Chavista National Assembly approves in first discussion the amnesty law for political prisoners in Venezuela

The National Assembly of Venezuela approved this Thursday, in the afternoon and in first discussion, the amnesty bill for political prisoners, which had been announced last week in the Supreme Court of Justice by the dictator Delcy Rodríguez, achieving that said bill will now pass to a public consultation so that it can then be approved in a second discussion. During the presentation of the bill, Chavista deputy Jorge Arreaza indicated that it excludes those persons who have been convicted for intentional homicide, drug trafficking, corruption, war crimes, crimes against humanity and serious human rights violations.

Arreaza also pointed out that Rodriguez's initiative has as its main objective to promote reconciliation among Venezuelans, even though the regime he has been part of has been the only political faction in Venezuela that, throughout two decades, has executed not only all kinds of violence and censorship, but also persecution and even crimes against humanity. "We are obliged by the homeland to be responsible, to heal wounds, to recognize each other, to understand each other and to build together the steps and the paths. It is an ethical obligation to help each other and to make us understand each other in this historic moment," Arreaza said.

In his speech, the president of the Assembly, Jorge Rodríguez, appointed a special commission for the consultation, which will be chaired by Arreaza and will include 18 other deputies, among them the former Minister of the Penitentiary Service Iris Varela and the son of dictator Nicolás Maduro, Nicolás Maduro Guerra. Rodriguez explained that the work of the commission had to be carried out "quickly", explaining that they did not have "much time", and urged that the consultation should include all those who wish to contribute with proposals and testimonies, among which will be the relatives of persons deprived of liberty and even the detainees themselves.

The non-governmental organization Foro Penal estimates that there are currently more than 600 political prisoners in the South American country. Although the Venezuelan dictatorship has been releasing several prisoners in recent days, several human rights defenders have assured that these releases have not been sufficient and are being carried out slowly. The Penal Forum has so far registered 383 releases of political prisoners.