Venezuela dictator Nicolás Maduro said on Monday (1) that his so-called Bolivarian national militia would already have “8.2 million Venezuelans” enlisted. The number is twice the estimate made by himself two weeks ago, when he had announced the mobilization of 4.2 million militia.
The Maduro Declaration took place during the announcement on the creation of the so -called “militia combat units”, which were distributed in 5,334 Communal circuits – groups of neighborhood councils controlled by the Chavista regime. These units, according to Maduro, will be organized in 15,751 popular bases of “integral defense”, local structures linked to the Bolivarian Armed Forces, where the new militiamen would be incorporated.
According to Maduro, these bases will serve to “reorganize” the “8.2 million Venezuelans and Venezuelans who are enlisted in the militia that will give us a mobilization capacity to ensure peace.” The Chavista leader also stated that the enlistment of militiamen will be “permanent”, but left the regime vice president, Delcy Rodríguez, the task of detailing how the process will work.
Forced recruitment
Maduro’s announcement occurs amid denunciations of forced enlistment of Venezuelans in his militia. The NGO Laboratory of Peace stated on Monday that it received complaints from civil servants, adolescents and the elderly who were being forced to join the militia through the campaign “I get ready.”
According to the organization, “these practices containe Article 134 of the 1999 Venezuelan Constitution, which prohibits forced recruitment, and Article 61, which protects freedom of conscience.” The NGO also pointed out that by obliging citizens to participate, the regime violates international treaties, such as article 18 of the International Civil and Political Rights Pact, which recognizes the right to the objection of conscience.
According to the peace laboratory, workers have been the target of threats from labor and social sanctions to join the militia, while public servants are pressured to record propaganda videos in exaltation to the regime. The entity states that the practice “violates the rights to freedom of expression and association, intensifying the climate of intimidation in the public sector”.
According to opponents, the “voluntary” enlistment made by Maduro on August 23 and 24 had low adhesion, with practically empty squares and registration centers.
Complaints received last week by the Argentine portal Infobae They also pointed out that soon after this failure, needy regions such as the state of Bolivar were the target of forced recruitment. Residents reported that military personnel arrived by surprise in cities in the region to bring young people and force them to join the militia.
