HRF strongly condemns the Venezuelan regime’s threats against pro-democracy activist @EliTrotta. She and other dissidents must be protected as they continue their efforts to hold Maduro and his cronies accountable.

The Maduro regime directly threatened @EliTrotta, a Venezuelan pro-democracy activist living in Argentina. She is part of the @FADDemocracia, an organization that presented the complaint against Nicolás Maduro, Diosdado Cabello, and other Venezuelan officials for their crimes against humanity in a court in Argentina. Both Maduro and Cabello are now the targets of arrest warrants issued by Argentinian judges. (clarin.com)

Maduro’s regime has repeatedly displayed its capacity to persecute critics abroad. In 2024, the government ordered the kidnapping and assassination of Ronald Ojeda, a retired Venezuelan military officer living in exile in Chile, according to testimony given to Chile’s interior and public security minister. Many of the individuals accused of taking part in the murder are linked to Tren de Aragua, a criminal organization with close ties to the Maduro regime. (New York Times)

In October, Venezuelan LGBTQ+ activist Yendri Velazquez and political analyst Luis Peche were the targets of a shooting in Colombia, where have been living in exile since the regime launched a widespread crackdown on critics who protested the fraudulent results of the 2024 presidential elections. (DW)