Video of the moment when the Venezuelan regime frees a group of detained minors

At least 40 teenagers were released on bail on Saturday, August 31, 2024, in Venezuela, after being arrested during the crisis unleashed after the questionable re-election of President Nicolás Maduro, reported the NGO Foro Penal, bringing the total number of young people released to 56.

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“At least 40 teenagers (political prisoners in the post-election situation since July 29) have been released today,” announced Alfredo Romero, a lawyer for Foro Penal, on the social network X.

The releases were granted under “precautionary measures,” added the director of that NGO, Gonzalo Himiob, and have occurred in Andean states such as Mérida, Táchira (west); its neighbor Lara; Portuguesa and Yaracuy (center), as well as Bolívar and Amazonas (south).

These new releases add to the 16 others that occurred on Thursday under measures of presentation to court every eight days.

How many minors have been captured in Venezuela?

According to records from Foro Penal, in Venezuela, about 114 teenagers were arrested and charged with terrorism or treason following protests against Maduro’s re-election in the July 28 elections, which the opposition denounces as fraudulent.

The authorities have not commented on the arrests of these young people under 18 years of age, but they have confirmed 2,400 people have been arrested and, of that total, Foro Penal has counted 1,581 as “political prisoners”, although it continues to receive complaints and cases.

What does Maria Corina Machado say about the arrest of minors?

“What they have done is brutal (…), children of 13 years old, 14 years old, and they have taken them to prisons where common prisoners are.”opposition leader María Corina Machado denounced this week.

Maduro provided two maximum security prisons, Tocuyito and Tocorón, to hold those arrested. Both prisons were under the control of criminal gangs for years until they were occupied by law enforcement in 2023.

This week, some 700 detainees were transferred to these prisons, according to the NGO Venezuelan Prison Observatory, which reported “irregularities” in the transfers.

The protests also left 27 dead and 192 injured.

Foro Penal reported on Wednesday that Venezuela currently has the highest number of “political prisoners” in almost 25 years, with 1,780 detainees. As of July 28, it had recorded 199 detainees for political reasons.

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