International
UN mission for Venezuela: the Government is reactivating its most violent repression
The Government of Venezuela is reactivating “the most violent form of repression,” with a new wave of arrests of opponents accused of alleged conspiracies such as the so-called Operation White Bracelet, the UN Independent International Mission for the country said on Wednesday.
The president of the mission, the Portuguese Marta Valiñas, presented to the United Nations Human Rights Council a new report on abuses committed by the Government of Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela since 2023, where she stressed that “the authorities invoke real or fictitious conspiracies to smedget, arrest and prosecute opponents or government critics.”
In this period, he said, we have moved from a less repressive phase of the opposition, in which Nicolás Maduro’s regime was limited to creating “a climate of fear and intimidation,” to a more violent period “that is activated to silence the voices of the opposition at any price.”
Valiñas highlighted in this sense that in January 2024 Maduro asked to “activate the Bolivarian Fury” after assuring that the previous year four conspiracies had been deactivated to assassinate him or organize coups d’état, and that the Attorney General’s Office then announced the aforementioned Operation White Bracelet, one of the alleged plots to end the life of the Venezuelan president.
In the context of the fight against this last conspiracy, 33 soldiers were degraded and expelled and different critics of the regime were arrested.
Among them, he recalled, campaign leaders of the Vente Venezuela party (the formation of the opposition leader María Corina Machado) and human rights defenders such as Tamara Suju, Sebastiana Barráez or the Spanish-Venezuelan Rocío San Miguel.
Valiñas stressed that San Miguel, arrested on February 9 at Maiquetía airport without a court order, was in unknown whereabouts for five days “until the authorities reported that she was detained in El Helicoide, one of the torture centers documented by the mission.”
He also stressed that that month, shortly after both the mission he presides over and the UN Office for Human Rights expressed their concern for San Miguel, the Venezuelan Government suspended the activities of the technical mission of the aforementioned office and gave its staff a period of 72 hours to leave the country.
The head of the mission completed by the Chilean Francisco Cox and the Argentine Patricia Tappatá added that together with San Miguel they have documented cases of 18 other women who remain detained under the accusation of being associated or involved in “conspiracies” to overthrow the Government.
Valiñas also recalled that in the six months analyzed by the mission, an agreement between the Government and the opposition was signed in Barbados so that it could participate in the elections of July 28 of this year, but subsequent actions highlighted the difficulties for its implementation.
The president of the mission gave as an example the suspension by the Supreme Court of Justice of the opposition primaries of October 22, won by a large majority by María Corina Machado, and the ratification by the same instance of justice of her 15-year political disqualification of 15 years, on January 26.
“These actions highlight the serious difficulties that exist in ensuring that the next presidential elections are carried out in accordance with the right to participate in public affairs provided for in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,” Valiñas stressed.
It also drew attention to the arrest warrants against 14 people, including prominent opposition leaders such as Juan Guaidó and Leopoldo López, for their alleged connection with a conspiracy against the consultative referendum on Guayana Esequiba, held on December 3.
In the turn of reply, Venezuela’s delegation to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva once again rejected the conclusions of the mission and even its legitimacy, created in 2019 by the council itself to investigate human rights abuses in the country.
“The United States, the greatest violator of rights in all history, the European Union and the failed Lima Group designed this mechanism (the mission) with the purpose of applying maximum pressure on Venezuela, manipulating the instruments and purposes of this Council,” said a representative of the delegation.
“They pretend to cover as absolute truths all the barbarities fabricated against Venezuela without verification or sustainable proof,” he added, alluding to the work of a mission that in his opinion “appeals to anonymous and even invented sources.”
International
Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president
U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem claimed that Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has deported “more than half a million” migrants due to pressure from former President Donald Trump.
During a cabinet meeting highlighting the “achievements” of Trump’s administration in its first 100 days, Noem asserted that under the Republican leader’s influence, “Mexico has finally come to the table” to negotiate on migration and fentanyl trafficking.
“The president of Mexico told me she has returned just over half a million people before they reached our border,” Noem stated, criticizing media reports that suggest the Biden administration deported more migrants than Trump’s.
“I wish those deportations were counted,” Noem added, “because those people never made it to our border—she sent them back because you made her.” She went on to thank Trump: “They never made it here because they got the message—because you were so aggressive.”
Noem has made controversial claims about Sheinbaum in the past, prompting the Mexican leader to refute them.
On April 1, Sheinbaum responded to one such statement by declaring, “The president answers to only one authority, and that is the people of Mexico,” after Noem said on Fox News that she gave Sheinbaum “a list of things Trump would like to see” and that Mexico’s actions would determine whether Trump granted tariff relief.
International
Vatican releases special “Sede Vacante” stamps ahead of papal transition
he Vatican’s post offices and select collector shops began selling special edition stamps this week to mark the period between the death of Pope Francis and the election of his successor.
Known as “Sede Vacante” stamps, they feature an image used on official Vatican documents during the interregnum between popes — two crossed keys without the papal tiara. These stamps went on sale Monday and will remain valid for postal use only until the new pontiff appears at the window overlooking St. Peter’s Square.
Until then, they can be used to send letters, postcards, and parcels. “Once the new pope is elected, the stamps lose their postal validity, but their collectible value rises,” said Francesco Santarossa, who runs a collectors’ shop across from St. Peter’s Square.
The Vatican has issued the stamps in four denominations: €1.25, €1.30, €2.45, and €3.20. Each is inscribed with “Città del Vaticano” and “Sede Vacante MMXXV” — Latin for “Vacant See 2025.”
International
Conclave to choose pope Francis’ successor could begin in early may
The conclave, which in the coming weeks must choose the successor to Pope Francis, will strictly follow a precise protocol refined over centuries.
The 135 cardinal electors, all under the age of 80, will cast their votes four times a day — except on the first day — until one candidate secures a two-thirds majority. The result will be announced to the world through the burning of the ballots with a chemical that produces the eagerly awaited white smoke, accompanied by the traditional cry of “Habemus Papam.”
The start date for the conclave could be announced today, as the cardinals are set to hold their fifth meeting since the pope’s passing. Luxembourg Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich suggested it could begin on May 5 or 6, following the traditional nine days of mourning. According to German Cardinal Reinhard Marx, the conclave could last only “a few days.”
Although the late Argentine pontiff appointed the majority of the cardinal electors, this does not necessarily ensure the selection of a like-minded successor. Francis’ leadership style differed significantly from that of his predecessor, Benedict XVI, a German theologian who was less fond of large public gatherings. It also marked a contrast with the popular Polish pope, John Paul II.
The Argentine Jesuit’s reformist papacy drew strong criticism from more conservative sectors of the Church, who are hoping for a doctrinally focused shift. His tenure was marked by efforts to combat clerical sexual abuse, elevate the role of women and laypeople, and advocate for the poor and migrants, among other causes.
Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president
Vatican releases special “Sede Vacante” stamps ahead of papal transition
Conclave to choose pope Francis’ successor could begin in early may
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
Defense Minister commends salvadoran soldier for Central American Cross Country victory
Extension of the state of emergency approved in southern Chile
-
International5 days agoCardinals seek a “unifier” as they prepare for conclave to elect new pope
-
International5 days agoTrump and Zelensky hold “very productive” meeting in Rome during Pope’s funeral
-
International2 days agoColombia sees deadliest surge in violence since FARC peace deal
-
International4 days agoNine dead after driver runs over crowd at Vancouver Street Festival
-
International4 days agoKing Charles III expresses deep sadness after Vancouver festival tragedy that left nine dead
-
Central America2 days agoGuatemala sees road blockades amid protests against lawmaker pay hikes
-
International2 days agoSpain’s PM calls for calm and patience amid ongoing blackout
-
International2 days agoConclave to choose pope Francis’ successor could begin in early may
-
International2 days agoMexican activist who exposed pornography ring found dead in Veracruz
-
International2 days agoMadrid carries out 286 elevator rescues amid massive blackout
-
International11 hours agoVatican releases special “Sede Vacante” stamps ahead of papal transition
-
International11 hours agoKristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president