Notes 6 Year Anniversary of Inhumane Imprisonment of Raul Diaz Pena
U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), Ranking Republican on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, today commented on the ongoing inhumane imprisonment of Raul Diaz Pena and Hugo Chavez’s overall campaign to silence his opposition. Statement by Ros-Lehtinen:
“Six years ago today Raul Diaz Pena was arrested on charges and thrown into prison by the Venezuelan regime. In the time since, he has been denied many of his most basic rights and freedoms, reportedly forced to stay in a cell with no access to outside light or air and denied critical medical attention.
“Despite multiple appeals to the courts and actions taken by the Inter-American Human Rights Commission, Raul is now facing another near-decade in prison after waiting more than four years just to receive a trial.
“For Chavez, prison sentences are an easy tool to use against his opposition. Just yesterday, he had the Supreme Court throw out a democratically-elected opposition mayor so he could replace him with one of his puppets.
“Even the Organization of American States finally decided to criticize Chavez for his human rights abuses. In fact, it took them over 300 pages to describe the extent of Chavez’s many violations.
“The United States and other responsible nations must hold Chavez accountable and take immediate steps to ensure that Raul Diaz Pena and all the people of Venezuela are no longer denied their basic rights and freedoms.”
