Protesters' mass arrests leave Venezuelans in fear

 

Supporters of President Nicolas Maduro take part in a march to defend the Law against Fascism, Neofascism and Similar Expressions in Caracas on August 23, 2024. [AFP]

Edward Ocariz was cooking lunch at his home in a Caracas slum when police stormed in.

"You're coming with us," officers said, as angry neighbors screamed, "Damn you!"

Ocariz is one of 2,400 people detained since Nicolas Maduro's disputed reelection in Venezuela.

Police with no arrest warrant whisked Ocariz away a week after the July 28 election that sparked protests across the country, even in some normally pro-government areas. The violence left 27 dead and nearly 200 injured.

Ocariz, 53, who lived in the poor Coche neighborhood on the west side of the capital, had complained previously about government abuses of power.

He was charged with crimes including terrorism and inciting hatred and taken to a maximum security prison.

'They're going to pay!'

"It's unfair," his sister Sol, 65, told AFP. "I can't let my brother, who is innocent, be imprisoned. He was a human rights activist. All he did was denounce irregularities."

Sol showed AFP videos of her brother's arrest: wearing flip-flops, a T-shirt and shorts, he was handcuffed and roughly taken by four hooded officers.

"They're taking him away!" someone can be heard saying on the recording. "Damn them! One day they're going to pay!" neighbors shouted from their balconies.

Maduro has claimed that those arrested had been recruited by the opposition to stir up violence in the South American country.

The protest was quickly put down. On the first day alone, more than 700 people were arrested.

The government urged people to report suspicious activities in what was called "Operation Tun Tun" -- the sound of the knock on the door when officers arrive.

More than 2,400 people have been arrested, some on terror charges, and more than 100 of them teenagers.

Dozens of people have gathered outside jails seeking news of their loved ones. Visits are limited and most detainees end up with public defenders.

"Forced disappearances and arbitrary detentions have become the new normal," the human rights NGO Provea has charged. It reported an average of 150 arrests per day over two weeks.

"We have gone from a period of selective persecution to one of massive persecution."

Maduro claims he is the guarantor of peace and has appealed for cooperation between civilians, the military and police.

'Terrified'

Edward Ocariz was taken to Tocuyito prison, one of two maximum security facilities where protesters are being held.

"This is terrible, but you have to do something," said Sol. She said she wasn't afraid to speak out about her brother's case -- making her a rare exception among the often panicky friends and relatives of detainees.

Among them is Jose, who asked that his real name not be used because he was "terrified."

Two of his friends are in custody, brothers aged 23 and 27 whom he called Luis and Carlos (not their real names).

"You really don't know what to say, who to talk to" because of the risk that an informer might turn him into police, Jose said.

Luis and Carlos protested on July 29 on a central avenue in the capital, which was full of people waving flags and burning tires.

"They wanted to defend the right to vote" in a "peaceful way," said Jose, 31.

The brothers were arrested after police broke into their apartment in the working-class neighborhood of La Candelaria, leaving their mother in "permanent anguish." Jose then took up the cause.

"This is really distressing. It's so hard to smile," said the mother of Adrian, a 16-year-old boy detained by soldiers in the street.

Like the rest, she was afraid to give her full name.

But social networks are replete with anonymous testimony from anguished relatives of detainees.

Sol, who was able to visit her brother in jail, said she asked him, "How do you want us to handle this?"

"Give it your all," he replied grimly.

"And here I am," she said. "We're not playing."