Venezuela civic space shrinking ahead of vote: UN rights chief

Civic space is shrinking in Venezuela in the run-up to July 28 elections in which President Nicolas Maduro is seeking a third term, the UN rights chief warned Wednesday.

Speaking before the United Nations Human Rights Council, Volker Turk said his office had documented in the past year "an increase in threats, harassment and assaults against civil society actors, journalists, unionists and other voices considered critical".

"I deplore that restrictions on civic space are growing," he said, in comments slammed by Venezuela's ambassador in Geneva.

Turk said that "the opposite is needed: a free and open space for debate".

Presenting a report on the situation in crisis-wracked Venezuela, he said that arrests and prosecutions had increased, with 38 cases of arbitrary detention in the past year.

Over the past year, Turk said his office had documented 28 cases of people detained for various lengths of time, with their whereabouts concealed from their relatives and lawyers.

All such cases of "enforced disappearances must be investigated and prosecuted, and the practice must end", he said.

Turk also voiced concern about draft legislation targeting non-governmental organisations and their financing, as well as a new "anti-fascism" law that critics say could be used to further crush dissent.

"I reiterate my appeal to refrain from adopting legislation that would further restrict the right to participate in public affairs, and the freedoms of association and expression," he said.

A long line of countries also voiced concern, with the European Union's representative at the council denouncing in particular that Venezuela's decision to "withdraw its invitation to an EU election observation mission".

But Turk welcomed Venezuela's announcement in April that his office would be permitted to operate in the country again, after its branch there was suspended and its staff ordered to leave in February.

It remains unclear however when that could happen.

Venezuela's UN envoy Alexander Gabriel Yanez Deleuze said Turk's report was "based on politically motivated information" and minimised the damage from "criminally imposed sanctions" by the United States.

He warned Turk that "as long as this behaviour of aggression against Venezuela goes on, it will be very difficult to restore cooperation with your office as we wanted".