On 25 November 2024, the SCA Secretariat received a document entitled “Updated report on the Ombudsman’s Office of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela”, submitted by 10 NGOs from Venezuelan civil society[1]. 

The Third-party submissions made allegations regarding the selection and appointment process of the current Defensor noting that the Constitution does not provide for re-election, the overall performance or lack of the DPV since 2016, including the absence of presentation of annual reports between 2017 to 2019 and alleged that there are no records of publications of reports since 2021; the alleged lack of independence of the DPV’s interaction with the international human rights system; the alleged lack of actions of the DPV on the rights of vulnerable groups such as indigenous peoples, LGBTIQ+, human rights defenders, migrants and refugees.

Third-party information also addressed the alleged lack of action of the DPV on the human rights situation in the country, mainly freedom of expression, protection of civic space and on the situations that took place following the Presidential election in July 2024.

The SCA acknowledges the response provided by the DPV on 6 January 2025 which did not address all the issues raised by the third-party information. The SCA is of the view that third-party submissions and publicly available information raise concerns about the partial compliance of the DPV with the Paris Principles, including its ability to conduct its mandate in an efficient manner and its perceived credibility in tackling systemic human rights violations.

In view of the information before it, the SCA decides to initiate a Special Review of the accreditation status of the DPV in accordance with Article 16.2 of the GANHRI Statute in order to determine the DPV partial compliance with the Paris Principles.

[1] Acceso a la Justicia, Acción Ciudadana contra el SIDA, Alerta Venezuela, Centro de Derechos Humanos de la Universidad Católica Andrés Bello, Centro para los Defensores y la Justicia, Civilis Derechos Humanos, Espacio Público, Prepara Familia, Programa de Promoción de Derechos Indígenas “Wayamoutheri”, y Unión Afirmativa.