A/HRC/45/CRP.11 Release 568. On 1 June 2018, President Maduro announced the release of “leaders and militants from the opposition who had committed violent political crimes” from 2014 to 2017 in a televised statement.1167 The Truth, Justice, Peace and Public Tranquillity Commission of the National Constituent Assembly,1168 headed by Delcy Rodríguez, recommended that 39 individuals accused of political violence be conditionally or fully released from detention. The Public Prosecutor’s Office and the Supreme Court of Justice ordered the corresponding measures. 569. Ms. Chacón and Mr. Hinds were both released on 1 June 2018, with precautionary measures requiring the defendants to present themselves monthly. Ms. Chacón was also prohibited from leaving the country. In August 2019, Judge Aquiles Ignacio Vera granted Ms. Chacón permission for international travel in order to pursue a graduate degree outside of Venezuela.1169 570. At the time of writing, Ms. Chacón and Mr. Hinds were still awaiting their preliminary hearing and the prosecutor has not yet presented formal charges, in violation of the timeframe established by law. 571. Most FEC leaders fled the country in the days following the detention of Ms. Chacón and Mr. Hinds for fear of arrest, effectively dismantling an organization that had taken years to build. One of the lawyers providing legal counsel in this case also left the country due to fear of persecution for his involvement with FEC and members of Corazón Valiente. 1170 Judicial Process 572. Ms. Chacón and Mr. Hinds’ family members filed numerous reports, beginning on 2 February 2018, to the Attorney General, the Attorney General’s Fundamental Rights Office, the Human Rights Ombudsperson, the Vice President, and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. These reports detailed allegations of arbitrary detention, incommunicado detention, cruel and inhuman treatment, and the non-execution of judicial orders.1171 573. On 11 February 2018, Armando Saavedra Castillo, acting on behalf of the EightyFirst District Attorney’s Office of the Caracas Metropolitan Area, opened an investigation into the complaint filed by Ms. Chacón’s family on 2 February 2018. 1172 On 2 March 2018, the prosecuting attorney nterviewed Ms. Chacón’s mother.1173 In August 2019, Ms. Chacón’s mother received the first and only phone call from the Public Prosecutor’s Office following up on the complaints and requests presented during Chacón’s detention. 1174 Neither family had received updates regarding the investigation at the time of writing.1175 1167 1168 1169 1170 1171 1172 1173 1174 1175 130 YouTube Video, Luigini Bracci Roa – Situación en Venezuela, Reunión completa de Nicolas Maduro con el Frente amplio de la Patria en Miraflores 1 Junio 2018, 1 June 2018, from minute 00:35:50, available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=thoxs2PugHk The Truth, Justice, Peace and Public Tranquillity Commission was created by the National Constituent Assembly on 8 August 2017. Thirty-First Court of Control of the Caracas Metropolitan Area, Act No. 31C-1170-19, 21 August 2019, on file with the Mission. Mission Interview C2EE06 in May 2020. Complaints and requests filed included, inter alia: 2 February 2018 to Attorney General’s Fundamental Rights Office; 8 March 2020 to Attorney General’s Fundamental Rights Office; 12 March 2018 to presiding judge of Thirty-First Control Tribunal, 9 April, 25 April and 26 April 2018 to Attorney General and Attorney General’s Fundamental Rights Office; 27 April 2018 to Vice President; 8 May 2018 to 81st District Attorney’s Office; 9 May 2018 to Vice President; 16 May 2018 to Attorney General; 17 May 2018 to Attorney General; 17 May to Human Rights Ombudsperson’s Office; 17 May 2018 to 81st District Attorney’s Office; 21 May 2018 to Inter-American Commission on Human Rights; 31 May 2018 to UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention. Order to open criminal investigation, MP-45829-2018, 11 February 2018. Extension of Interview, MP-45829-2018, 2 March 2018. Mission Interview with Geraldine Chacón on 13 May 2020. Mission Interview with Geraldine Chacón on 13 May 2020; Mission Interview C2EE06 and C2EE07 in May 2020.