Page 12 - ARUBA TODAY
P. 12

A12   WORLD NEWS
                    Thursday 11 april 2019
            Red Cross regains entry to Venezuela jails, military prisons




            Associated Press                                                                                                    er in what she said was re-
            CARACAS, Venezuela (AP)                                                                                             taliation  for  her  husband's
            —  The  International  Com-                                                                                         opposition  to  the  govern-
            mittee of the Red Cross has                                                                                         ment.
            regained access to prisons                                                                                          She said that if not for remit-
            in  Venezuela,  including                                                                                           tances sent by a relative in
            highly  guarded  military  fa-                                                                                      Spain,  her  husband  could
            cilities  where  dozens  of  in-                                                                                    starve on the scant rations
            mates  considered  political                                                                                        provided by prison authori-
            prisoners are being held, as                                                                                        ties.
            President  Nicolas  Maduro                                                                                          While her husband told her
            seeks to counter mounting                                                                                           he wasn't among the small
            criticism of his government's                                                                                       group of prisoners allowed
            human rights record.                                                                                                to speak with the Red Cross
            The  fact  that  the  visits  in-                                                                                   representatives,  she  was
            clude military prisons, which                                                                                       hopeful the visit would help
            hadn't  been  previously  re-                                                                                       improve dire conditions for
            ported,  was  confirmed  to                                                                                         all inmates, many of whom
            The  Associated  Press  by  a                                                                                       she  said  are  suffering  from
            human  rights  lawyer  and                                                                                          lack  of  medical  attention
            family  members  of  those                                                                                          and  claim  to  have  been
            detained.                    In this April 28, 2017 file photo, prison guards stand on the roof of the Ramo Verde military prison   tortured.  The  AP  was  un-
            International   Red   Cross   in Los Teques, on the outskirts of Caracas, Venezuela.                                able to independently veri-
            President Peter Maurer met                                                                         Associated Press  fy those claims.
            with Maduro Tuesday night                                                                                           "It's very important they talk
            as he wraps up a five-day  But  others  say  it's  a  glim-  and hold private conversa-  cas, which holds 69 people  to  prisoners  and  see  first-
            visit  to  Venezuela,  where  mer  of  hope  in  an  other-  tions with inmates in which  the  opposition  considers  hand what's happening in-
            the Geneva-based group is  wise  grim  outlook  for  the  they can voice complaints  political prisoners.           side," she said.
            among  international  orga-  country,  opening  normally  and  send  messages  to  Sandra  Hernandez,  whose  Red Cross officials declined
            nizations trying to carve out  thin-skinned  authorities  to  loved ones.              husband, Sgt. Luis Figueroa,  to comment and the group
            a  space  to  deliver  badly  scrutiny — albeit of a con-  But  the  group  had  been  has  been  jailed  at  Ramo  has made little mention of
            needed  humanitarian  aid  fidential  nature  —  and  denied  access  in  Venezu-      Verde  since  January  for  the prison visits, saying only
            and  technical  assistance  that  along  with  renewed  ela at least since 2012.       leading  a  military  uprising  in  a  Tweet  that  it  had  be-
            free  of  the  winner-take-all  engagement  with  interna-  The  renewed  visits  in  Ven-  against Maduro, was pres-  gun  visiting  jails  under  the
            politics  contributing  to  the  tional actors like the World  ezuela  began  March  11  ent last week when a white  auspices  of  civilian  peni-
            country's turmoil.           Food  Program  and  Pan  when a Red Cross delega-         vehicle  emblazoned  with  tentiary authorities. It made
            Critics  say  the  prison  visits,  American  Health  Organi-  tion  visited  a  model  prison  the international Red Cross'  no  mention  of  the  visits  to
            which  were  coordinated  zation could possibly pave  in  Caracas,  the  Simon  Bo-    logo pulled up to the prison  the military-run facilities.
            directly  with  the  socialist  the  way  for  political  dia-  livar Center for the Forma-  entrance.              Prisons  Minister  Iris  Varela
            government with little input  logue.                      tion  of  New  Men.  Eighty-  She was there for her once-  has  said  the  visit  to  the
            from  its  opponents,  have  Red  Cross  representatives  seven foreigners are being  a-week visit, delivering ba-  civilian  facility,  and  oth-
            the  effect  of  legitimizing  visit  prisons  every  year  in  held.                  sic  staples  —  pasta,  rice  ers  to  come,  were  part  of
            Maduro's rule at a time he's  more  than  100  countries,  But  more  significant  was  and  cheese  —  that  have  an  effort  to  share  with  the
            face  mounting  pressure  following  an  established  the  visit  two  weeks  later  become  harder  to  afford  world  Venezuela's  positive
            from the U.S. and dozens of  protocol allowing it to verify  to  the  military-run  Ramo  since she was fired from her  experience   rehabilitating
            allies to resign.            conditions  of  confinement  Verde prison outside Cara-   $7-a-month job as a teach-   inmates.q


            Judge orders detention of former Peruvian president




                                                                      Associated Press             placed in detention.         tion crusade has rallied Pe-
                                                                      LIMA,  Peru  (AP) — A Peru-  "This  is  a  very  difficult  mo-  ruvians accustomed to see-
                                                                      vian judge on Wednesday  ment  for  me,"  Kuczynski  ing their leaders go unpun-
                                                                      ordered the 10-day deten-    wrote  on  Twitter.  "But  I  will  ished  for  financial  crimes,
                                                                      tion of former President Pe-  confront  it  with  fortitude  said some of the payments
                                                                      dro Pablo Kuczynksi as part  of  someone  who  has  only  were made when Kuczyns-
                                                                      of  a  money  laundering  dreamed of a better coun-       ki was serving as a Cabinet
                                                                      probe  into  his  consulting  try."                       minister  and  overseeing
                                                                      work  for  the  company  at  The  80-year-old  ex-head  Odebrecht's  construction
                                                                      the heart of Latin America's  of  state  resigned  last  year  of  a  highway  connecting
                                                                      biggest graft scandal.       after  opposition  lawmak-   Peru to Brazil. Peru has gone
                                                                      Special    police   agents  ers  seeking  his  impeach-   farther  than  any  other  na-
                                                                      gathered  outside  Kuczyns-  ment revealed that his pri-  tion  outside  Brazil  in  pros-
                                                                      ki's neo-colonial mansion in  vate  consulting  firm  had  ecuting  politicians  for  their
                                                                      Lima and later left with the  received some $782,000 in  ties  to  Odebrecht,  which
                                                                      former Wall Street banker in  previously undisclosed pay-  admitted in a plea agree-
            In this photo provided by the Andina News Agency, Peru’s former   a white SUV.         ments  from  Brazilian  con-  ment  with  the  U.S.  Justice
            President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, waves as he leaves a medi-  He was taken to a prosecu-  struction  giant  Odebrecht  Department  to  doling  out
            cal branch of the prosecutor’s office, in Lima, Peru, Wednesday,   tor's  office,  where  he  was  more than a decade ago.  almost $800 million in bribes
            April 10, 2019.
                                                     Associated Press  expected to be examined  Prosecutor  Jose  Domingo  for business throughout Lat-
                                                                      by  a  doctor  before  being  Perez,  whose  anti-corrup-  in America.q
   7   8   9   10   11   12   13   14   15   16   17