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Venezuela has said it will immediately release a “significant number” of political prisoners after the US captures Nicolas Maduro, an early sign that the government wants to end a decade of harsh repression in the Latin American country.
The move comes as Maduro’s former deputy and the country’s interim president, Delcy Rodriguez, aims to make her mark on the new government and show her willingness to cooperate with the US, particularly on opening up the oil sector to American companies.
His brother Jorge, the president of the National Assembly, said on Thursday that “to support the efforts we must all make for national unity and peaceful coexistence”, the government has “decided to immediately release a significant number of Venezuelan and foreign nationals”.
Jorge Rodríguez called the move a “unilateral gesture” by Caracas, implying that the decision was made without American influence. He also thanked Qatari authorities and international mediators, including Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who responded to the interim leader’s call to “defend our right to full life, self-determination, freedom and peace.”
He also acknowledged the contribution of former Spanish Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, who has been promoting “national coexistence” in Venezuela “for the last 10 years.”
It is unclear which political prisoners, some of whom have been detained for years, will be released or how many. High-profile detainees include lawyer Rocío San Miguel and Rafael Tudares, son-in-law of Edmundo González, the opposition candidate in the 2024 elections.
Spain said five Spanish citizens were being released, including a man with dual citizenship.
Spain’s Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Alberes said those released included Jose Maria Busoa and Andres Martínez Adesney. The men were arrested in October 2024 and Venezuelan authorities accused them of involvement in a conspiracy to harm Maduro. Caracas said he also had ties to Spain’s intelligence agency CNI, a charge Madrid denied.
“Spain, which enjoys fraternal relations with the Venezuelan people, welcomes this decision as a positive step in the new phase that Venezuela is entering,” the Foreign Ministry said.
The Venezuelan government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Before his fall, Maduro’s regime was characterized by intense repression, with authorities often violently suppressing protests. Hundreds of opposition figures and critics were harassed, arrested, or forced into exile.
Alfredo Romero, president of local rights watchdog Foro Penal, called the move “good news” and said his organization “already knows of some people who are on the path to freedom, including foreigners”.
Hours before Rodríguez’s announcement, Romero said it was a “timely moment” for the release of 806 political prisoners, including 85 foreign nationals, and for “an end to the repressive machinery.”
The interim government began action on Monday as Delsey Rodriguez was sworn in as interim president.
According to rights groups, about 14 journalists were detained and later released, while government-aligned militias searched the phones of ordinary Venezuelans for evidence of subterfuge or support for Maduro’s arrest of US forces.
Additional reporting by Barney Jopson in Madrid
