UN experts on Thursday urged Venezuela to ensure that the country’s Attorney General and  Ombudsperson are appointed based on merit, stressing that both positions play a crucial role in protecting human rights and upholding the rule of law.

The experts further added:

We regret that in the past, appointments to these positions were made outside the constitutionally established procedures and carried out in breach of minimum standards of merit, transparency, independence, citizen participation and accountability, appointing the same people over and over.

After the recent resignation of Tarek William Saab and Alfredo Ruiz from their positions as Attorney General of the Republic and Ombudsperson, the Nomination Evaluation Committee had appointed interim authorities until the finalization of the appointment process. However, the party, which is composed only of sitting deputies from the ruling party, the United Socialist Party of Venezuela, led by former disgraced President Nicolás Maduro, has drawn criticism for being an undemocratic body that excludes the country’s broad opposition and civil society, further entrenching Maduro’s grip on power despite his widely disputed claim to the presidency.

Despite the list of candidates having been released, rights groups have pointed out that the criteria used to evaluate and vet potential appointees is not transparent, making it impossible to verify whether those with concrete allegations of rights abuses have been properly screened out. This lack of transparency in appointing the Attorney General and Ombudsperson was most evident in the 2017 dismissal of Attorney General Luisa Ortega Díaz for dissent. She was subsequently replaced by Tarek William Saab, a longstanding government ally, who was then replaced by Larry Devoe. 

This appointment process reflects a broader strategy that has become the focus of Venezuela’s authoritarian consolidation over the past two decades, with analysts pinpointing that the ruling party’s systematic capture of state institutions, from the judiciary to the electoral council, has allowed it to weather economic collapse, international sanctions, and political opposition, effectively eliminating any meaningful accountability.

The appointment process for the highest positions is critical, as it serves as the primary mechanism for upholding safeguards against the arbitrary detention of human rights defenders.