Edni López

Edni López
Edni López Barrios
Bornc. 1991
OccupationsActivist, humanitarian worker
Known forHumanitarian and women's rights advocacy in Venezuela

Edni López Barrios (born c. 1991) is a Venezuelan activist and humanitarian worker. She has worked in defence of women's rights and gender equality and has served as programme manager at the S4V Foundation. On 4 August 2024 she was detained at Simón Bolívar International Airport in Maiquetía under the stated pretext of an issue with her passport. Several human rights organisations, including Amnesty International, demanded to know her place of detention and called for her immediate release. She was released on 9 August 2024 with precautionary measures, including a travel ban and a requirement to report to the courts every 30 days.[1]

Career

López has been a lecturer at the Faculty of Legal and Political Sciences of the Central University of Venezuela. She is also a poet, has worked in defence of women's rights and gender equality, and has served as programme manager at the S4V Foundation.[1][2][3][4] She completed a master's degree in humanitarian social programmes.[5]

In March 2024, López was recognised by the embassy of the Netherlands as one of 100 leading figures for her work in the humanitarian field.[1][3]

Detention

On 4 August 2024, López was detained at Simón Bolívar International Airport as she was preparing to travel to Buenos Aires, Argentina. Family members and non-governmental organisations alleged that she was held by security officials under the stated pretext of problems with her passport.[1][2][3][6] Twenty-four hours after her detention, her relatives had visited the main detention sites in Caracas — including the headquarters of the Dirección General de Contrainteligencia Militar (DGCIM) in Boleíta, the Maripérez Police Investigation Directorate, and the SEBIN (Bolivarian National Intelligence Service) facilities in Plaza Venezuela and at El Helicoide — without obtaining information from officials.[7][8]

Two days after her detention, her mother said she had learned that López was being held in La Guaira.[9] She was brought before the courts on 6 August, when her relatives reported that she had not been allowed access to private legal counsel.[10] By 8 August she had been moved three times in total, although 72 hours after her detention she had not had a preliminary hearing.[11]

Non-governmental organisations such as the Venezuelan Program for Action-Education in Human Rights (Provea), Espacio Público, Amnesty International, Justicia Encuentro y Perdón, Aula Abierta, APUCV and Civil Rights Defenders Latin America requested information about her detention and called for her immediate release.[1]

López was released on 9 August 2024 with precautionary measures, including a travel ban and a requirement to report to the courts every 30 days.[12]

Personal life

López has diabetes. Her relatives expressed concern about her health during her detention because they did not know whether she had access to her medication.[4][7][8]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Amnistía Internacional y otras ONG denuncian desaparición forzada de la trabajadora humanitaria Edni López". Runrunes (in Spanish). 5 August 2024. Retrieved 6 August 2024.
  2. 1 2 "Defensora de DD.HH Edni López lleva más de 24 horas desaparecida, denuncian ONG". Efecto Cocuyo (in Spanish). 5 August 2024. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 "Familia denuncia desaparición de trabajadora humanitaria en aeropuerto de Maiquetía". El Pitazo (in Spanish). 4 August 2024. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
  4. 1 2 Castillo, Luis (5 August 2024). "ONG denuncia desaparición de trabajadora humanitaria". El Carabobeño (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 5 August 2024. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
  5. ↑ "Las 4 noticias destacadas de la noche del 8 de agosto en CNN en Español". CNN en Español (in Spanish). 8 August 2024.
  6. ↑ "Retienen en Maiquetía a trabajadora humanitaria Edni López, la segunda en 48 horas". Correo del Caroní (in Spanish). 5 August 2024. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
  7. 1 2 León, Daniela (5 August 2024). "Familiares de Edni López desconocen el paradero de la trabajadora humanitaria tras 24 horas de su desaparición". El Diario (in Spanish). Retrieved 8 August 2024.
  8. 1 2 "Amnistía Internacional exigió la liberación de la defensora de los DD. HH. Edni López". VPItv (in Spanish). 5 August 2024. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
  9. ↑ "Madre desesperada busca a su hija politóloga: La detuvieron saliendo de Venezuela en medio de ola de persecución". NTN24 (in Spanish). Retrieved 9 August 2024.
  10. ↑ "Trabajadora humanitaria Edni López fue trasladada a tribunales de La Guaira". El Pitazo (in Spanish). 6 August 2024. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
  11. ↑ Dona, Katherine (8 August 2024). "Trabajadora humanitaria Edni López fue trasladada por tercera vez a tribunales". El Pitazo (in Spanish).
  12. ↑ "Liberan a Edni López con medidas cautelares en Venezuela: duró cinco días retenida". Noticias Caracol (in Spanish). 9 August 2024. Retrieved 10 August 2024.
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