Ahead of elections in July 2024, Venezuela has recorded the continued use of politically motivated arrests and detentions targeting those challenging Nicolás Maduro’s leadership. Shannon Lorimer explores wrongful detention trends over the course of Maduro’s presidency and considers its ongoing use as a tool to silence government critics after the vote.…
As a crackdown on high-profile gang leaders in Venezuela continues, entrenched socio-economic problems and a long history of security policy failures show that tackling organised crime in the country is a Herculean task, writes Agnieszka Palutkiewicz.
In some Latin American countries, the Covid-19 pandemic has expanded and strengthened the role of security forces, providing increased opportunities for corrupt officials to engage in extortive practices, wrongful detentions and other crimes with greater impunity, writes Erin Drake.
In the context of the ongoing political and economic crisis, Timothy Geschwindt examines the consequences of a deteriorating security environment in Venezuela.
Runaway inflation and a failing oil industry have all but collapsed Venezuela’s economy. Citizen frustrations with the government’s inability to offer a credible way out of the economic crisis means the country remains increasingly vulnerable to outbreaks of widespread unrest, writes Markus Korhonen.
Facing mounting socio-political and economic pressure, Venezuelan president Nicholás Maduro continues to deploy a strategy of appeasement in an effort to maintain his military’s support and avoid a large-scale mutiny amongst its ranks, writes Renato Whitaker.