International Criminal Court prosecutors said Monday that they are “actively monitoring” events in Venezuela, where security forces have launched a crackdown on the opposition in the aftermath of the nation's disputed presidential election.
Forces loyal to President Nicolás Maduro have rounded up more than 2,000 people for demonstrating against the president or casting doubt on his claims that he won a third term in the July 28 election despite strong evidence he lost the vote by a more than two-to-one margin.
In a written statement to reporters, the office of ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan said it is “actively monitoring the present events and has received multiple reports of instances of violence and other allegations following the presidential election of 28 July in Venezuela.”
The statement said that Khan's office has “engaged with the Government of Venezuela at the highest-level to underline the importance of ensuring that the rule of law is adhered to in the present moment and emphasize that all persons must be protected from violations that may constitute Rome Statute crimes.”
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The Rome Statute is the court's founding treaty and outlines the crimes over which it has jurisdiction.
Maduro has called on Venezuelans to denounce election doubters via a government-run app originally created to report power outages. He also said the government was refurbishing two gang-dominated prisons to accommodate an expected surge in jailing of opponents.
“There will be no mercy,” Maduro said on state TV.
The ICC has an ongoing investigation into violence that followed Venezuela's 2017 election but has so far not sought any arrest warrants.
Khan, announced in late 2021 that he was opening the investigation after a lengthy preliminary probe and an official referral — a request to investigate — in 2018 by Argentina, Canada, Colombia, Chile, Paraguay and Peru.
His office said Monday that “those investigations are continuing with focus.” It highlighted an online portal where potential evidence can be filed.
“Should any individual or organization have information that may be relevant to this ongoing investigation, we would welcome you to submit this,” the prosecution statement said.
