{"id":41324,"date":"2026-01-05T13:45:01","date_gmt":"2026-01-05T13:45:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/conectas.org\/?post_type=noticia&p=41324"},"modified":"2026-01-07T18:39:24","modified_gmt":"2026-01-07T18:39:24","slug":"joint-statement-by-human-rights-organizations-on-the-situation-in-venezuela","status":"publish","type":"noticia","link":"https:\/\/conectas.org\/en\/noticias\/joint-statement-by-human-rights-organizations-on-the-situation-in-venezuela\/","title":"Joint statement by human rights organizations on the situation in Venezuela","content":"
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Human rights organizations from Latin America released, this Monday (the 5th), a joint statement denouncing the military attack carried out by the United States against Venezuela on January 3. The document characterizes the action as a violation of international law, warns of risks to the Venezuelan population, and calls for an international response grounded in multilateralism and human rights. Read the full statement below:<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n

Joint statement – situation in Venezuela<\/b><\/p>\n

January 5th, 2026<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

As human rights organizations in Latin America, we condemn the United States\u2019 military attack against multiple targets in Venezuela on January 3, 2026. This armed aggression openly violates international law and sets a dangerous precedent throughout the region. We further express our concern about the grave human rights situation in Venezuela and underscore the obligation to respect these rights.<\/span><\/p>\n

The capture of de facto president Nicol\u00e1s Maduro and his wife to be prosecuted in the United States represents the culmination of a progressive U.S. military buildup in the Caribbean in recent months. In particular, since September 2025, the United States has carried out <\/span>32 attacks on vessels<\/span><\/a> in the Caribbean and the Eastern Pacific under the pretext of combating drug trafficking, resulting in the extrajudicial execution of at least 115 people.<\/span><\/p>\n

These actions by the Trump administration, undertaken without a legitimate justification of self-defense and outside the context of an armed conflict, are incompatible with the principles and norms of international law and threaten peace and security in the region. Indeed, this military aggression violates the prohibition on the unilateral use of force established in the Charter of the United Nations, Article 2(4), and the OAS (Articles 3, 19-22).<\/span><\/p>\n

The attacks also represent risks for the Venezuelan people. The escalation of the crises of institutionality and legitimacy in Venezuela, following the rejection of the results of the July 28, 2024 presidential elections and the <\/span>subsequent repression<\/span><\/a> unleashed by the Venezuelan authorities, has exacerbated the complex humanitarian emergency afflicting Venezuelans. Our organizations have repeatedly condemned the human rights violations perpetrated by the <\/span>de facto<\/span><\/i> government of Nicol\u00e1s Maduro and the persecution of organizations and individuals who have denounced these violations. The situation of people who remain arbitrarily detained and whose lives and integrity are at risk, is of particular concern.  Furthermore, diplomatic and international mechanisms have failed to articulate an effective response to this crisis, reinforcing the important role that the international community now has in addressing the new situation in the country.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Venezuelan people deserve a democratic transition, and for those responsible for serious human rights violations to be held accountable before the law. However, this cannot justify the breakdown of international order or legitimize violent and unilateral means that impose the logic of the strongest. <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Any solution to the crisis facing the country must be democratic, peaceful, and negotiated, centered on respect for human rights, and prioritizing the participation and decision-making power of Venezuelan society over its future. The idea expressed by President Trump that the U.S. will \u201crun\u201d the country is counter to the Venezuelan people’s right to self-determination. <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The consequences for the region are also cause for concern. The U.S.\u2019s actions should be viewed in light of the rapid decline of democracy in the United States under the Trump administration. Domestically, the federal government has implemented a repressive policy against dissident voices and protesters, including attempts to militarize internal security, attacks on freedom of expression, and the mass criminalization, detention, and deportation of migrants.<\/span><\/p>\n

During the January 3 press conference, Trump stated that the United States is reaffirming its hegemony in the Western Hemisphere, echoing the so-called Monroe Doctrine. These statements reflect a growing tendency toward unilateral action and disregard for the sovereignty of countries in the region, which are even more concerning in the context of the various electoral processes in  2026, in which the United States may seek to exert influence without regard for democratic norms, as was the case in 2025 in Argentina and Honduras.<\/span><\/p>\n

In this context, the military operation in Venezuela and the return to the Monroe Doctrine, in addition to the existence of a growing number of governments in Latin America that, whether out of ideological affinity or under pressure, validate this type of illegal action, constitute a threat to democratic order and stability in Latin America. <\/span><\/p>\n

We reiterate our solidarity with the Venezuelan people and civil society, especially with the victims of repression and human rights violations by the Venezuelan security forces, and with those directly affected by the U.S. armed aggression. We call on the countries of the region to take action to contribute to negotiations that will enable a democratic and peaceful transition in Venezuela, to protect human rights defenders, protesters, and political prisoners in Venezuela, and to protect those who decide to migrate in this uncertain situation. The situation demands an immediate, firm, and coordinated international response based on human rights and democratic principles that respects multilateralism and dialogue between nations to preserve Latin America as a war-free zone.<\/span><\/p>\n

The statement is signed by:<\/span><\/p>\n

ARTIGO 19 Brasil e Am\u00e9rica do Sul<\/span><\/p>\n

Centro de Estudios de Derecho, Justicia y Sociedad (Dejusticia)<\/span><\/p>\n

Centro de Estudios Legales y Sociales (CELS)<\/span><\/p>\n

Conectas Direitos Humanos, Brasil<\/span><\/p>\n

Oficina en Washington para Asuntos Latinoamericanos (WOLA)<\/span><\/p>\n

Archivo Provincial de la Memoria de C\u00f3rdoba, Argentina<\/span><\/p>\n

Art\u00edculo 19 oficina para M\u00e9xico y Centroam\u00e9rica<\/span><\/p>\n

Asociaci\u00f3n Ecum\u00e9nica de Cuyo, Argentina<\/span><\/p>\n

Asociaci\u00f3n de Familiares de Detenidos Desaparecidos y M\u00e1rtires por la Liberaci\u00f3n Nacional (ASOFAMD), Bolivia<\/span><\/h2>\n

Asociaci\u00f3n por la Memoria y los Derechos Humanos Colonia Dignidad, Chile<\/span><\/p>\n

Centro Cultural Museo y Memoria de Neltume, Chile<\/span><\/p>\n

Centro de Derechos Humanos Miguel Agust\u00edn Pro Ju\u00e1rez, M\u00e9xico <\/span><\/p>\n

Centro de Pol\u00edticas P\u00fablicas y Derechos Humanos (Per\u00fa EQUIDAD)<\/span><\/p>\n

Centro Nueva Tierra, Argentina<\/span><\/p>\n

Comisi\u00f3n Argentina para Personas Refugiadas y Migrantes (CAREF), Argentina<\/span><\/p>\n

Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ)<\/span><\/p>\n

Coordinadora Nacional de Derechos Humanos, Per\u00fa <\/span><\/p>\n

Fundaci\u00f3n 1367-Casa Memoria Jos\u00e9 Domingo Ca\u00f1as, Chile <\/span><\/p>\n

Fundaci\u00f3n Asociana, Argentina <\/span><\/p>\n

Fundaci\u00f3n para la Libertad de Prensa (FLIP), Colombia<\/span><\/p>\n

Fundaci\u00f3n Protestante Hora de Obrar, Argentina<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Global Center for the Responsibility to Protect<\/span><\/p>\n

Grupo de Apoyo Mutuo (GAM), Guatemala <\/span><\/p>\n

Heinrich-B\u00f6ll-Stiftung Buenos Aires<\/span><\/p>\n

INREDH – Ecuador <\/span><\/p>\n

Instituto Vladmir Herzog, Brasil<\/span><\/p>\n

International Service for Human Rights<\/span><\/p>\n

Instituto de Estudos da Religi\u00e3o – ISER, Brasil<\/span><\/p>\n

Justi\u00e7a Global, Brasil<\/span><\/p>\n

Memoria Abierta, Argentina<\/span><\/p>\n

Memorial Brumadinho, Brasil<\/span><\/p>\n

Memorial para la Concordia, Guatemala<\/span><\/p>\n

M\u00e9xico Unido Contra la Delincuencia (MUDC), M\u00e9xico<\/span><\/p>\n

Museo de la Memoria de Rosario, Argentina <\/span><\/p>\n

N\u00facleo de Preservacao da Memoria Pol\u00edtica, Brasil<\/span><\/p>\n

Observatorio Ciudadano, Chile<\/span><\/p>\n

Prodesc, M\u00e9xico <\/span><\/p>\n

Sexuality Policy Watch\/ABIA, Brasil<\/span><\/p>\n

Sitio de Memoria Estadio Nacional, Chile <\/span><\/p>\n

Sitio de Memoria Tlaxcoaque, M\u00e9xico<\/span><\/p>\n

Somos Memoria-Red de colectivos de memoria mexicanos, M\u00e9xico <\/span><\/p>\n

Temblores, Colombia<\/span><\/p>\n

Washington Brazil Office <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n<\/div>

<\/div>","excerpt":"

Human rights organizations from Latin America released, this Monday (the 5th), a joint statement denouncing the military attack carried out by the Uni…<\/p>\n","author":29,"featured_media":39345,"parent":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"tema":[12277],"class_list":["post-41324","noticia","type-noticia","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tema-institutional"],"acf":{"subtitle-pt":"Organizations warn of the impacts of the armed escalation on human rights, democracy, and the protection of the civilian population in 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