The president of the Venezuelan National Assembly, Jorge Rodríguez, met this Friday in Caracas with the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, at the invitation of President Nicolás Maduro.
«In the framework of the visit of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, we reiterate our position for constructive dialogue under the respect and protection of the Human Rights of our people,» the Venezuelan National Assembly has indicated in its Twitter profile.
Turk, who took office in the middle of last year, has been in Venezuela for two days after visiting Colombia. The High Commissioner, whose agenda did not include any meeting with political prisoners, held talks the day before with representatives of civil society organizations, human rights defenders and «victims’ groups».
The Unitary Platform of Venezuela, which brings together the main opposition parties, asked him to visit political prisoners during his visit to the South American country. «Hopefully this visit will bring the release of the more than 240 prisoners, among civilians and military, men and women», said opposition member Adriana Pichardo.
The High Commissioner’s trip also coincides with the debate opened by the approval of a law which, according to the Venezuelan opposition, seeks to «persecute» NGOs, so he is also asked to condemn «this arbitrary decision».
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
