Families demand proof of life as Venezuela releases only dozens of political prisoners. Here’s what we know so far

By Michael Rios, Gonzalo Zegarra, CNN

(CNN) — Venezuela’s promise last week to release “a significant number” of political prisoners is progressing far slower than many had hoped, as hundreds of families continue to wait in agony for their loved ones to be freed.

Of the more than 800 people considered arbitrarily detained for political reasons, the government had released only 56 individuals as of Monday evening, according to human rights organization Penal Forum.

That count is less than half of the 116 reported by Venezuelan authorities, who did not publish the identities of those freed or say which detention centers they had been released from.

Venezuela began releasing high-profile prisoners on Thursday, including opposition politicians, at the demand of the United States. It said the move was a gesture “to seek peace” with Washington days after US forces captured President Nicolás Maduro in a daring military operation.

On Tuesday, a source told CNN that Venezuela had freed at least four Americans who were imprisoned in the country. It marks the first known release of detainees from the US since the ouster of Nicolas Maduro. CNN previously reported that at least five Americans had been detained in Venezuela in recent months.

CNN has reached out to the US State Department and Venezuelan government for additional comment.

The Venezuelan government said the release of prisoners is part of a review of cases that had been initiated “voluntarily” by Maduro and is now continuing under the mandate of the acting president, Delcy Rodríguez.

The UN Fact-Finding Mission on Venezuela said Monday that it welcomed the releases, but said the numbers fell “far short” of Venezuela’s human rights obligations. It called for the immediate and unconditional release of all people being held in arbitrary detention, highlighting the trauma their families are also experiencing.

“Relatives must be provided with clear and timely information about the fate, whereabouts, and legal status of their loved ones, as well as guaranteed access and regular visits,” the mission said.

Families of Venezuelan detainees urged authorities in the country to free political prisoners “without pettiness or sectarianism” at a press conference with rights groups Tuesday.

“We are demanding the full and unconditional release of all political prisoners, not just a specific number,” said Aurora de Superlano, the wife of Freddy Superlano – an opposition figure who is one of hundreds of detainees yet to be released.

“We are applying the necessary pressure and carrying out the necessary activities within what we, as a nation, are able to do. All of our efforts are aimed at contributing to the freedom of all the political prisoners in our country,” she told reporters in Caracas.

‘What about us?’

For days, families of prisoners have been camping outside detention centers, desperately waiting for news about their loved ones.

Some have lit candles, hung up protest signs and knelt to pray for their relatives.

Many have been urging the government to provide evidence that those being held are still alive, by allowing video calls or showing recent photos.

Evelis Cano, the mother of a detainee, called on Venezuela’s legislative leader and acting president to empathize with families.

“Put your hand on your heart, Héctor Rodríguez and Delcy Rodríguez. If they were your family members, what would you be doing? Because they have just taken away President Nicolás Maduro and you were asking for proof of life. And if you want the human rights of the president to be respected — what about Venezuelans? What about us?”

Calls for proof of life escalated this weekend after officials confirmed the death of at least one prisoner.

Prosecutors said Sunday that an active officer of the national police, who had been imprisoned since December 11, died on January 10. According to the Public Prosecutor’s Office, officials determined that the detainee, 52-year-old Edilson José Torres Fernández, had suffered “a sudden health crisis.”

“He was immediately transferred to the medical center, arriving with vital signs and receiving timely medical attention. However, he suffered a stroke followed by cardiac arrest, which caused his death,” prosecutors said.

Torres had been detained for sharing messages “critical of the regime,” according to the Committee of Relatives for the Freedom of Political Prisoners.

The group Peace Laboratory criticized the government, saying Torres could have been released and received medical attention. “He would possibly be alive today,” it said on social media.

Petra Vera, a relative of a detainee, called on the government to be more transparent.

“If this proof of life cannot be issued — which is the only thing we are asking for — then give us the opportunity to access the facilities and see our relatives,” she said.

Lack of information

To add to families’ frustrations, authorities have not released the identities of those freed, so civil society organizations have been trying to verify the number and names of those involved.

In response to a CNN inquiry, the Public Prosecutor’s Office said that “for now” there is no official list of those who have been released from prison.

Amnesty International has also expressed concern over the lack of information.

“Many of these people are victims of enforced disappearance. There has been no news of them, and it is hoped that these releases will shed light on the conditions they have been in for many months in some cases,” Erika Guevara Rosas, the organization’s global director of research, advocacy and policy, told CNN.

Among the first people released last week were Enrique Márquez, a former presidential candidate, and Biagio Pilieri, a businessman and former Venezuelan lawmaker, who were being held at the notorious El Helicoide detention facility, a massive uncompleted shopping mall in Caracas that now serves as a prison and headquarters of the secret police.

But rights groups say many high-profile human rights defenders remain behind bars or have disappeared entirely as part of Venezuela’s campaign of enforced disappearances.

The opposition has denounced the government for the limited number of releases, calling it “an unacceptable mockery” to the Venezuelan public.

Opposition leader María Corina Machado met with Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican on Monday to ask him to intervene and help secure the release of the hundreds of political prisoners still being held.

Leo had called for the protection of civil and human rights in Venezuela and said he is closely monitoring developments in the Latin American country with “deep concern.”

Machado is scheduled to meet with US President Donald Trump on Thursday, a senior White House official told CNN.

Claims of abuse and conditional release

Penal Forum’s Alfredo Romero warned that the releases are conditional, as they don’t close legal proceedings and can carry a risk of re-arrest.

The family of Venezuelan-Spanish activist Rocío San Miguel appeared to support the claim, saying that the ex-political prisoner is not fully free, but rather under “a precautionary measure in lieu of imprisonment, granted within the framework of her legal proceedings.” They added that “she remains prohibited from making public statements.”

Venezuela’s penitentiary services said Monday that the released individuals were linked to “acts associated with disrupting the constitutional order and threatening the stability of the nation,” but did not address any demands or conditions allegedly given to those released. CNN has reached out to the Venezuelan government about the matter.

Despite the alleged enforced silence, some foreign ex-detainees who have returned to their country have recounted what life was like in prison.

“I was afraid they would kill me,” said Italian businessman Mario Burlò, 52, who was arrested in late 2024 and arrived in Rome on Tuesday.

“My family in Italy thought I was dead; it was a real kidnapping,” he said, according to the newspaper Corriere della Sera.

Regarding his conditions in confinement, he recounted: “I told the prison guards, even dogs have daily needs. We are less than dogs. They took us to the yard, one hour a day, five days a week. They made us sleep on the ground among the cockroaches.” In statements quoted by La Stampa, he described the prison as “worse than Alcatraz.”

The businessman said the abuse he suffered was not physical but psychological, such as being kept incommunicado from his family for almost a year.

CNN has reached out to the Venezuelan government about claims of abuse.

Alberto Trentini, a humanitarian worker who was also arrested in November 2024, said upon arriving in Italy that he was happy, but his happiness “comes at a very high price,” according to a statement read by his lawyer. “The suffering of these interminable 423 days is indelible. From now on, we need to live days of peace and awareness to try to erase the bad memories and overcome the suffering of these 14 months,” he said.

“Our thoughts are with all those who remain detained and their families, so that they may soon experience the joy of liberation,” he added.

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Sol Amaya, Rocío Muñoz-Ledo, Ivonne Valdés and Jennifer Hansler contributed to this report.