Barinas residents charged after protesting electricity outages

Five individuals have been charged with multiple offenses following protests against prolonged electricity outages in Barinas, Venezuela. The detainees, identified as José Carrero, Freddy Daniel Pérez Camacho, Denis Díaz, Maikel Pérez, and José Coiran, were released from custody after a court hearing but must report to judicial authorities every 20 days.

The charges brought against them include public incitement, resistance to authority, and conspiracy (agavillamiento). The protests were triggered by severe power failures in the region, which reportedly exceeded 16 continuous hours of outages.

The human rights organization Fundehullan Vzla has condemned the legal actions, describing them as the criminalization of citizen protest. Roland García, director of the NGO, stated that demanding quality basic services is a constitutional right and called for the full release of the five individuals.