— A total of about 214 people, including Venezuelans and foreigners, are on hunger strike, said the mother of one of the prisoners, an Argentinian. — They decided to start a hunger strike on Friday, after the introduction of the amnesty law, which does not benefit the vast majority of them — explained the daughter of another prisoner.
The strike began in one of the prisons on the outskirts of the capital Caracas. The families explained that the prisoners were protesting against the scope of the amnesty, which did not cover many of the prisoners.
How many political prisoners went on hunger strike?
What was the reason for the prisoners' hunger strike?
What law has been introduced in Venezuela?
How many prisoners have benefited from amnesty recently?
Jorge Arreaza, chairman of the parliamentary committee leading the amnesty process, announced on Friday that the Venezuelan authorities had agreed to release 379 political prisoners under the amnesty law adopted on Thursday; 80 of them were released from prison on Saturday. On Friday, the Venezuelan National Assembly also established a special commission to investigate the cases of political prisoners excluded from the amnesty. A total of 1,557 detainees applied for release under the law.
Criticism of the opposition towards the amnesty law
Following the January 3 operation in which US forces captured authoritarian Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, authorities in Caracas released hundreds of political prisoners. However, according to the non-governmental organization Foro Penal, over 600 such people are still behind bars.
The opposition criticized the amnesty law, believing that it would not cover all people convicted for opposing the regime. The amnesty excluded, among others, people accused of “promoting” military activities against Venezuela.
