Dutch riot police kick a man during a demonstration to protest government policies including COVID-19 curfew, lockdown, and related restrictions in The Hague. Photo: Peter Dejong/AP.
Venezuela’s National Assembly (AN) will investigate a human rights violation of a Venezuelan citizen residing in the Netherlands, said the first vice president of Venezuela’s AN, Iris Varela. Varela’s statement was made in parliament, during the presentation of a video revealing the abuse of power by the Dutch police.
“He went out for a walk with his dog and, according to the Dutch authorities, for skipping the COVID-19 measures, he was assaulted, and not happy with that,” said Varela. “They put him in a mental hospital, they have given him drugs, they have blackmailed the family, and whoever gets involved in defending him will suffer the same fate.”
Varela said that Yosman Alexis Lozada, 22 years old, suffered from physical and psychological abuse, and was also treated by Venezuelan professionals online. Experts assure that he does not present symptoms that would lead to his involuntary incarceration in a mental hospital.
“For refusing to pay the fine to the king, they put him in a mental hospital,” said deputy Varela.
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On May 6, the Venezuelan National Assembly had agreed to continue its Special Commission for the Investigation of Crimes against Venezuelan Migrants Abroad, and to work on proposals to convert them into laws. The Commission aims to determines the identities of Venezuelan nationals killed or victimized by serious crimes in other countries, in order to evaluate if the level of persecution amounts to genocide.
The decision to investigate was made by the Plenary prior to the approval of the preliminary report presented by the president of the Special Commission, deputy Julio Chávez, who reported that the commission received 2,532 complaints from Colombia, Chile, and the border between Mexico and the United States, mostly initiated by relatives of the victims.
Due to the gravity of the incident in the Netherlands, the Special Commission for the Investigation of Crimes against Venezuelan Migrants Abroad will be in charge of the case.
(VTV) with Orinoco Tribune content
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/JRE/SL
