Caracas Venezuela — Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro met with the head of the International Criminal Court as he faces an ongoing investigation by the court into crimes against humanity for his crackdown on anti-government protests.
ICC chief prosecutor Karim Khan’s fourth visit to Venezuela comes nearly two months after an appeals panel ruled that the court’s investigation could continue despite the Maduro government’s objections.
Khan said he was hopeful that, even as its independent investigation continues, the ICC can provide technical assistance to Venezuelan authorities so that there can be “meaningful justice” in the country.
“I believe there is unity in a central truth: that the dark cloud of suspicions or accusations will not dissipate without the gentle breeze or winds of credible investigations,” Khan said after his meeting with Venezuela’s chief prosecutor.
The United States is not part of the Netherlands-based ICC, but has backed the investigation, originally proposed by several Latin American nations, into Maduro’s responsibility for alleged abuses, including arbitrary detentions, torture and sexual violence, committed by security forces. deployed to quell protests in 2017. .
The appeals judges, announcing their ruling in March, said the Venezuelan investigations appeared to focus on low-level perpetrators. The ICC seeks to prosecute senior commanders considered responsible for crimes.
The judges also noted that “Venezuela appears to have taken limited investigative measures and that, in many cases, there appear to be periods of unexplained investigative inactivity,” the court said in its statement.
They also said domestic investigations in Venezuela did not appear to sufficiently cover parts of the international investigation, including allegations of persecution and sexual crimes.
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