It was born in the 1950s with a purpose that was forgotten in time and that now aims to be recovered. The Helicoidone of the most feared prisons for political prisoners in Venezuela, will be converted into “a social, sports, cultural and commercial center.” At least that’s what he said Delcy Rodriguezthe president in charge of the country.
More than a building
In this striking helix-shaped building, considered an avant-garde project due to its design, the headquarters of the Bolivarian National Police (PNB)he Bolivarian National Intelligence Service (Sebin) and others, according to the NGO Foro Penal, which is dedicated to the defense of political prisoners.
But the reality goes much further. Organizations like the UN They have already denounced the existence of “torture rooms” inside, where several detainees have already lost their lives in custody, including the opposition Fernando Albán and General Raúl Isaías Baduel, according to the EFE agency.
International complaints and human rights violations
In what was born as a commercial project, alleged human rights violations have already been reported in Venezuela since 2014. In fact, the appearance of the name of this prison has increased considerably in reports from the UN Independent International Fact-Finding Mission about the country.
According to the text, in 2023, the authorities resorted to “torture and mistreatment” as methods to “generate and perpetuate” a “climate of fear” in Venezuelan civil society. According to this report, some people interviewed stressed that the “symbolic impact of cases of torture and ill-treatment served to terrorize civil society and inhibit dissent, in particular the maintenance of torture rooms in El Helicoide.”
The reconversion of the Helicoid
Now, Rodríguez seeks to give the place a second chance. Although yes, she speaks of a “care center”, but never of terror, torture or death: “Within the framework of the relaunch of the ‘Guardians of the Homeland’ mission, which includes socioeconomic care programs for our police officers, we have decided that the Helicoide facilities, which today serve as a care center, become a social, sports, cultural and commercial center for the police family and for the communities surrounding this facility.”
The decision comes after he proposed applying a general amnesty law to free political prisoners in the midst of the release process that the Government has been carrying out since January.
