Under the leadership of President Hugo Chávez and now President Nicolás Maduro, the accumulation of power in the executive branch and erosion of human rights guarantees have enabled the government to intimidate, censor, and prosecute its critics, leading to increasing levels of self-censorship.

Leading opposition politicians were arbitrarily arrested, prosecuted, convicted, and barred from running for office in legislative elections scheduled to be held in December 2015. The government prosecuted dozens of lesser-known opponents for criticizing the government.

Police abuse, poor prison conditions, and impunity for abuses by security forces—including arbitrary arrests, beatings, and denial of basic due process rights for largely peaceful protesters in early 2014—remain serious problems. Other concerns include lack of access to basic medicines and supplies—the result of problematic government policies—and continuous harassment of human rights defenders by government officials.

Security Force Abuses

In early 2014, the government responded to massive anti-government protests with brutal force. For several weeks, security forces routinely used unlawful force against unarmed protesters and bystanders. They also tolerated and sometimes collaborated directly with armed pro-government gangs that attacked protesters with impunity. Detainees were often held incommunicado on military bases for 48 hours or more before being presented to a judge, and in some cases suffered a range of abuses during detention that included severe beatings; electric shocks or burns; and being forced to squat or kneel without moving for hours.

The Attorney General's Office reported that it had opened 189 investigations into alleged security force abuses committed during the protests and that 42 law enforcement officials had been charged with improper use of force and firearms and ill-treatment of citizens. It did not give information on convictions.

Protesters continue to be subject to criminal prosecution for participating in peaceful demonstrations. In January, National Guardsmen detained Raúl Virgilio Quintero García, a university student, for taking a picture of people waiting in line to purchase goods at a supermarket in Caracas. Six demonstrators who had been peacefully protesting against the long lines, and a cameraman filming them, were also detained. Quintero was charged with several crimes and released, but remains subject to criminal prosecution.

Starting in July 2015, President Maduro deployed more than 80,000 members of security forces nationwide in “Operation Peoples’ Liberation” to address rising security concerns, as well as illegal sales of scarce products.