Elvis Macuare Guerrero, director of the Judicial Institute of Barinas, Injuba, was removed from his position following a prisoner riot that took place in this plains region in the south of the country. The rebellion of the detainees, denouncing torture, cruel and degrading treatment, occurred two days ago and was supported by their families. The Public Ministry announced the start of a criminal investigation into the complaints received.
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The information about Macuare’s removal was provided by General Guiseppe Cacioppo, secretary of citizen security of the state of Barinas, who confirmed the imminent arrival in the state of the Minister of Penitentiary Affairs, Julio García Zerpa. The Injuba episode has caused a lot of commotion in Barinas. Authorities are offering families a dialogue table to address their complaints and channel the demands of the prisoners.
Since last weekend, unarmed prisoners climbed onto the roof of the prison, burning mattresses and asking for help, denouncing the treatment they received and the terrible conditions of the Barinas prison. On the signs they displayed, phrases such as “SOS” or “no more torture” could be read.
The National Guard immediately surrounded Injuba in a threatening manner, seeking to quell the rebellion. The families, distressed, stated that this was a legitimate and peaceful protest, since the prisoners were unarmed. Relatives of the inmates claimed that tear gas bombs were thrown at the pavilions that led the riot. There were also reports of shots fired at the inmates and some injured. According to the Venezuelan Prison Observatory, 1,200 men and 100 women had declared a hunger strike.
In recent days, complaints about the situation of the prisoners in this prison have increased: baths with cold and running water; beatings; violent searches, confiscation of their belongings, and refusal to receive visits. On May 14, relatives of the prisoners had denounced the harsh treatment received by the staff during visiting hours. They stated that food was denied to the prisoners, and that hooded men entered the cells to beat them. After this episode, the former director of Injuba, Robert Cabezas, was replaced by Macuare.
“From the moment the events became known, the Chief Prosecutor of the state of Barinas, along with prosecutors assigned to the General Directorate of Human Rights Protection, appeared at this facility in order to contribute to the peaceful resolution of the conflict,” states the Public Ministry in a statement. “National Prosecutor 49, with competence in Human Rights, has been commissioned to carry out the corresponding investigations.”
The Injuba prison riot — a prison for common inmates where there are some political prisoners — occurred shortly after the scandal over the death of Víctor Hugo Quero, a political prisoner who died under the custody of the Venezuelan state, and his mother, Carmen Navas, who died last week after spending 10 months trying to find him. The case of Quero and his mother, in which there were no responsible parties and only an official apology was issued, caused widespread outrage. It was the latest chapter in a series of complaints about the brutal treatment political and common prisoners receive in Chavismo prisons, and the absence of citizen guarantees prevailing in Venezuela.
Complaints about the harsh prison conditions at Injuba are also not new. A few days ago, Tito Volcanes, an agricultural producer and prisoner in this facility, had to be hospitalized in an emergency after presenting a severe case of dehydration. He underwent surgery for acute peritonitis and is still in critical condition, according to reports from his close ones. Volcanes was released last week following the latest announcement by the Chavista regime to free an additional 300 political prisoners.
“When this normalizes, we will request a forensic doctor to evaluate each one’s condition,” said Caccioppo. “If a person reports having been tortured, the forensic doctor conducts the evaluation and an investigation is opened.”
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