"IACHR did not learn of HR violations because they were not reported"

Venezuelan authorities argue that the Inter-American Commission of Human Right's failed to take a stance against human rights crimes committed before 1998, such as the murders of members of guerrilla groups in Cantaura (1982) or Yumare (1986); and, on the contrary, the IACHR moved promptly more recently to reject cases such as enforced disappearances in the state of Vargas in 1999 or the presence of paramilitary groups in the state of Aragua. In their view, this mirrors the biased attitude by the IACHR and its double standards. And based on such allegations, Venezuelan authorities are taking steps to withdraw from the OAS body.

However, Ligia Bolívar, the director of the Human Rights Center, Andrés Bello Catholic University, denied that these facts show that the body of the Organization of American States (OAS) has a particular interest in attacking the Venezuelan government.

"It is true that the IACHR did not investigate cases of human rights violations occurred in Venezuela from 1959 to 1998, but this was not due to an IACHR's decision to ignore what was happening in Venezuela, but because it did not receive any complaint," she said.

Bolívar noted that the low number of complaints made during that period was the result of the lack of knowledge about the operation of the Inter-American System.