IACHR grants precautionary measures in favor of Gina Paola Mercado Núñez in Venezuela

December 20, 2024

Washington, D.C. – The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) issued Resolution 101/2024 on December 16, 2024, to grant precautionary measures in favor of Gina Paola Mercado Núñez in Venezuela, in the belief that she faces a serious, urgent risk of suffering irreparable harm to her rights.

According to the request for these precautionary measures, the beneficiary was deprived of liberty on July 29, 2024, after recording the demonstrations that followed elections in the country. The request alleges that her current conditions of detention put Mercado Núñez at risk, particularly given that she is not being given the medical care she requires to treat her health problems. The IACHR noted the State's failure to provide the information that had been requested and its failure to implement protection measures, which appear to leave the beneficiary defenseless and vulnerable in Venezuela's current context.

Consequently, in keeping with Article 25 of its Rules of Procedure, the IACHR asked the State of Venezuela to take the following action:

(a) Adopt any measures necessary to protect the beneficiary's rights to life, personal integrity, and health, with a gender perspective, in compliance with the applicable international standards

(b) Implement any measures necessary to ensure that the beneficiary's conditions of detention reflect the applicable international standards, particularly the following: conducting adequate medical examinations and establishing the treatment she requires; enabling her to regularly be exposed to sunlight; providing her food that is both suitable for human consumption and compatible with her health condition; providing her water and basic sanitation; ensuring that she is not subjected to ill treatment or physical assault; and enabling her contact with her trusted lawyer, granting him access to the criminal files in the case against the beneficiary

(c) Come to an agreement with the beneficiary and her representatives concerning any measures that need to be taken

(d) Report on any actions adopted to investigate the alleged events that gave rise to the adoption of these precautionary measures, in order to prevent such events from happening again in the future

The fact that these precautionary measures have been granted and their adoption by the State do not entail a prejudgment on a potential petition that may be filed before the inter-American system to allege violations of rights protected by the applicable instruments.

The IACHR is an autonomous body of the Organization of American States (OAS) whose mandate is based on the OAS Charter and the American Convention on Human Rights. Its mission is to promote and defend human rights throughout the Americas and to serve as an advisory body to the OAS in this area. The IACHR consists of seven independent members elected by the OAS General Assembly who serve in a personal capacity and do not represent their countries of origin or residence. 

No. 325/24

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