IACHR grants precautionary measures to Pedro Miguel Guanipa and Rafael Arturo Ramírez in Venezuela

August 20, 2025

Washington, DC—On August 15, 2025, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) adopted Resolution 56/2025, through which it granted precautionary measures to protect Pedro Miguel Guanipa Villalobos and Rafael Arturo Ramírez Colina. The IACHR determined that both individuals face serious and urgent risks in Venezuela, as their rights to life, personal integrity, and health are under threat of irreparable harm.

The requests for the precautionary measures alleged that the beneficiaries are members of the opposition political party Primero Justicia and public officials in the municipality of Maracaibo, where Rafael Arturo Ramírez Colina was serving as mayor at the time of his arrest. Both individuals are currently being deprived of their freedom and held in isolation and incommunicado detention. No information has been made available on their health or the conditions in which they are being held. The State has not provided the IACHR with any information.

After analyzing the allegations of fact and law presented by the requesting party, the IACHR noted that there is an imminent risk of the beneficiaries experiencing irreparable harm in the current national context, given that they have been deprived of their freedom since 2024, their lack of contact with their families, the absence of official information on their health and detention conditions, and the impossibility of requesting protective measures before domestic authorities.

Furthermore, the IACHR has not been provided with information from the State that demonstrates the actions being taken to address or mitigate the risk the beneficiaries are exposed to. As a result, the IACHR deemed that urgent measures needed to be adopted immediately to safeguard their rights. In response to these circumstances, in accordance with article 25 of its Rules of Procedure, the IACHR requested that Venezuela:

a) take the necessary measures to protect the beneficiaries' rights to life, personal integrity, and health;

b) implement adequate measures to guarantee that their conditions of detention are compatible with international human rights standards, in particular by:

 i. facilitating contact with their families, legal representatives, and lawyers of choice, granting full access to their files and records;

 ii. providing official information on the beneficiaries' legal status in the context of the ongoing criminal proceedings in which they are involved;

 iii. conducting an immediate medical evaluation and ensuring they receive any medical care they might need;

c) take the necessary measures to enable the beneficiaries to carry out their activities as opposition political leaders without being subjected to threats, harassment, intimidation, or acts of violence;

d) agree on the protective measures to be implemented in consultation with the beneficiaries and their representatives; and

e) report on the measures taken to investigate the alleged events that gave rise to this resolution with the aim of preventing their recurrence.

The granting of these precautionary measures and their implementation by the State does not constitute a decision on any petitions that may eventually be filed before the inter-American system concerning possible violations of rights protected under the applicable instruments.

The IACHR is a principal and autonomous body of the Organization of American States (OAS), whose mandate stems from the OAS Charter and the American Convention on Human Rights. The Inter-American Commission has the mandate to promote the observance and defense of human rights in the region and acts as an advisory body to the OAS on the matter. The IACHR is made up of seven independent members who are elected by the OAS General Assembly in their personal capacity, and do not represent their countries of origin or residence.

No. 168/25

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