The Venezuelan opposition party, Voluntad Popular (VP), has reported the murder of one of its activists, Edwin Santos, who was allegedly abducted by state security forces in the western state of Apure. Santos was taken into custody on Wednesday and found dead on Friday morning, sparking outrage from party officials and activists.
According to VP, Santos went missing on Wednesday afternoon while traveling in the El Pinal district, a region where he had been actively advocating for community issues. The party stated that witnesses confirmed he was intercepted by members of the state security agencies. It was later verified that Santos had been held at the military counter-intelligence agency's headquarters in Guasdualito, a city near the Colombian border.
Adriana Pichardo, a VP official, reported that Santos's wife identified his body after it was discovered on a bridge he had campaigned to repair. The bridge had collapsed in July due to heavy rains, and Santos had been vocal about its significance, linking Apure with the neighboring state of Táchira.
From exile in Spain, opposition presidential candidate Edmundo González Urrutia condemned the murder and called for justice. He expressed the need for transparency regarding Santos's death, stating, “Venezuela wants and needs the truth.” González Urrutia recently received the European Union’s top human rights award alongside opposition leader María Corina Machado for their resistance against President Nicolás Maduro's regime.
The incident highlights the ongoing repression faced by opposition activists in Venezuela, particularly following the controversial July elections, where Maduro claimed victory despite opposition polling suggesting González Urrutia had won by a significant margin.
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