Overview of Human Rights in Venezuela

Abstract

Formally constituted as a democracy, Venezuela has experienced a significant deterioration in the situation of human rights during the last decade. Such deterioration is partly due to an increasing concentration of power in the Executive branch which is reflected in the lack of independence of other branches of the State. The lack of independence – particularly in the judiciary and its subsidiary bodies – results in an increasing impunity in human rights related crimes. The present paper shows how the institutional framework has been dismantled and converted into a tool of a political project, with negative effects on human rights.

Keywords

• Human rights
• Venezuela
• Hugo Chávez’s government