Lawyers for Lawyers (L4L) and the International Observatory of Lawyers at Risk (OIAD) express their profound concern regarding recent actions by Venezuelan judicial authorities and the Public Prosecutor’s Office that have obstructed the professional duties of human rights lawyer Luis Aguilera, preventing him from acting as legal representative of a victim of human rights violations in criminal proceedings.
Luis Aguilera is an ad honorem lawyer with the Human Rights and Justice Commission of the State of Aragua, an organisation through which he provides legal assistance to victims of human rights violations both nationally and before the Inter-American Human Rights System.
Obstacles to the exercise of the right to defence
According to information received, Mr Aguilera has been subjected to a campaign of stigmatisation by judicial authorities and representatives of the Public Prosecutor’s Office, who have publicly described him as an “official complainant”. He has also reported repeated obstacles to carrying out his work as a lawyer representing victims of human rights violations.
In the most recent incident, while acting as legal representative of a victim in criminal proceedings, Mr Aguilera’s power of attorney was accepted and added to the case file, but he was subsequently prevented from being formally recognised as the victim’s representative and from participating in the proceedings. He was denied access to the case file and was not notified of procedural acts, limiting his ability to effectively defend his client’s interests.
On 27 May 2026, the judge refused to recognise his representation on the grounds that the power of attorney had not been notarised, despite it having previously been accepted by the Public Prosecutor’s Office and despite the impossibility of obtaining notarisation due to the victim’s enforced disappearance by State security agents. Without issuing a reasoned decision, the judge verbally informed him that she did not recognise him as the victim’s legal representative and, consequently, prohibited him from intervening in the proceedings, compelling him to leave the courtroom.
A concerning pattern
Our organisations observe with concern that this incident is not an isolated occurrence. For years, we have documented numerous acts of harassment and obstruction targeting Luis Aguilera in connection with his work representing victims of human rights violations.
