Venezuela: Opposition electoral witness dies while in custody of the Maduro regime
The opposition coalition has condemned the death of Jesús Manuel Martínez, who was arbitrarily detained by the government on July 29. Martinez, who had supervised the recent elections, was also a member of Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia's campaign team.
Protesters in Venezuela after the elections and the withholding of the electoral records by the regime.
Jesus Manuel Martinez, who was an electoral witness for the opposition in the past elections in Venezuela, died in police custody, as reported by the Plataforma Unitaria. According to the opposition coalition, Martinez was arbitrarily detained last summer, after after his involvement in the electoral process.
According to the Venezuelan opposition, Martinez reportedly died as a result of the mistreatment and poor conditions to which he was subjected during his detention by the Maduro regime.
The opposition claims that during his arrest, Martinez had his leg amputated due to severe necrosis caused by diabetes. Lack of health care and mistreatment by the authorities reportedly worsened his condition during his time locked up.
Martinez was part of Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia’s campaign team in the Aragua municipality of Barcelona, Anzoategui. During the campaign, Jesus Manel Martinez supervised the assigned voting table and signed the minutes, officially recording the opposition candidate’s victory.
Gabriel Bastidas, Venezuelan opposition activist, published the official minutes of the July 28 elections which show that Edmundo González obtained 68% of the votes compared to Nicolás Maduro’s 30%. Martinez was arrested one day after the election.
The opposition has reported the systematic violation of human rights in the Venezuelan regime's prisons, where a large number of Venezuelan opponents and citizens are serving sentences or awaiting trial. The number of political detainees increased after the July elections and as a result of the wave of demonstrations against the regime, which concealed the electoral records that show González Urrutia‘s victory.
"Cases such as that of Jesús Martínez Medina, detained in the Aragua municipality of Anzoátegui state, make tragically visible the seriousness of the consequences of not receiving medical attention behind bars,” said a spokesperson for Unidad Venezuela. "We demand justice, immediate medical attention to the detainees and freedom. Denying timely medical attention is a clear violation of human rights and entails individual responsibility for those who should provide it.”
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