PEN International urges the Venezuelan authorities to: 

• Release Rory Branker immediately and unconditionally.

• Provide immediate access to independent legal counsel and contact with his family. 

• Respect his right to a fair trial and full legal defence. 

 Send your appeals to:  

Tarek William Saab 

Role: Attorney General of Venezuela 

Contact: cooperació[email protected];  [email protected]   

Alfredo José Ruiz Angulo 

Role: Ombudsman of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela 

Contact:  [email protected] 

 Please also send electronic copies to the Embassy of Venezuela in your country. Embassy addresses may be found here. 

 Please inform PEN International of any action you take and any feedback you receive.  

#DayoftheImprisonedWriter: PEN International calls for the immediate and unconditional release of journalist Rory Branker. He is being held in Venezuela under arbitrary detention, without judicial guarantees or access to independent legal counsel. 

We urge the Venezuelan authorities to: 

• Release him immediately. 

• Ensure his physical and psychological integrity. 

• Grant him access to independent legal defence and contact with his family. 

Freedom of expression is not a crime. 

#RoryBranker 

#DayoftheImprisonedWriter: Journalist #RoryBranker has been arbitrarily detained in Venezuela. We call for his immediate release and for full respect of his rights. 

#DayoftheImprisonedWriter: A journalist has been forcibly disappeared for doing his job. PEN International calls for the immediate release of Rory Branker, detained in Venezuela since 20 February 2025. He must be granted full legal protection and contact with his family. #RoryBranker 

On 20 February 2025, officers from Venezuela’s Bolivarian Intelligence Service (SEBIN) intercepted Rory Branker in Caracas and forced him into a vehicle. Authorities also raided his home, confiscating two laptops and two mobile phones. Initially, the agents reportedly stated that they were going to take him to the El Helicoide detention centre; however, shortly afterwards his family lost contact with him for 206 days. 

On 26 February 2025, Venezuela’s Minister of the Interior and Justice, Diosdado Cabello, stated on his television programme Con el mazo dando that Branker “was captured for extorting people through the publication of false information and other crimes (...) to create media narratives against the government and the people of Venezuela”. The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) granted precautionary measures in favour of Rory Branker, in the belief that he faces a serious, urgent risk of suffering irreparable harm to his rights to life and personal integrity, on 29 August 2025. 

Branker has been held in the cells of the Bolivarian National Police (PNB) in Boleíta (Zone 7), Caracas. On 8 December 2025, however, Venezuelan authorities carried out another wave of inter-prison transfers of political detainees. On that day, he was moved to an unknown location without any prior notification to his lawyers or relatives.

Branker is the beneficiary of precautionary measures granted by the IACHR, following his previous victimisation through enforced disappearance. His detention exemplifies the Venezuelan authorities’ ongoing crackdown on independent journalism, and critical voices.

PEN International reiterates that Branker remains arbitrarily detained in retaliation for his journalism and demands his immediate and unconditional release, ensuring full protection of his physical and psychological wellbeing.

The persecution of journalists in Venezuela has intensified since the presidential elections on 28 July 2024. PEN International has documented at least ten cases of journalists arbitrarily detained in possible retaliation for their work and the exercise of their freedom of expression, facing baseless charges including “terrorism”, “incitement to hatred”, and “criminal association” — accusations that carry penalties of up to 20 years in prison. 

The IACHR, through its ongoing monitoring, has recorded a wide range of violations against freedom of expression in Venezuela. These include arbitrary searches, violence against journalists during protests, the confiscation or revocation of passports belonging to journalists and human rights defenders, extortion, censorship, stigmatisation, and threats by state authorities. The IACHR has also noted the closure of radio stations, restrictions on online content, and extensive digital surveillance. 

In response to these pressures, many journalists have felt compelled to take measures for their own protection, including self-censorship. Numerous media workers have fled the country, further undermining Venezuela’s already fragile independent media sector. 

In the period surrounding the presidential elections on 28 July 2024 — which, according to the Carter Center, failed to meet international standards for electoral integrity and cannot be considered fully democratic — there was a sharp increase in attacks against members of the press. 

Since that time, reports of harassment, detention, and enforced disappearances of journalists have continued. With support from the Venezuelan NGO Espacio Público, PEN International has documented the cases of journalists who have been arbitrarily detained or forcibly disappeared due to their reporting or for voicing critical opinions about the authorities.