Venezuelan authorities have increasingly targeted political opponents living abroad, according to a new report detailing hundreds of cases of transnational persecution. The findings reveal a systematic effort to silence dissent beyond Venezuela’s borders.
A report by the organization Un Mundo Sin Mordaza documented 326 cases of transnational persecution against Venezuelan opposition members in exile between 2024, and 2025. The report underscores a concerning expansion of the Venezuelan government’s repressive reach.
Researchers found that the state has extended its coercive measures to citizens continuing to exercise their rights to protest, public denunciation, and political participation from outside the country.
The study indicates this practice isn’t isolated, but rather a continuation of established repressive patterns within Venezuela, now adapted to the context of the diaspora.
Stigmatization and Propaganda
The most frequent tactic identified was extraterritorial stigmatization and propaganda, accounting for 176 cases (53.99%).
The investigation found this involves the systematic utilize of official narratives and media platforms to publicly discredit opponents abroad, portraying them as threats or undermining their activism.
Although these actions don’t always involve physical detention, they can lead to cumulative effects such as isolation, loss of employment opportunities, migration risks, and a climate of intimidation impacting those targeted and their networks.
Consular Services as a Control Mechanism
The report also documented 112 cases (34.36%) of consular-administrative repression.
In these instances, document processing, registration, and consular services are used as tools for pressure or exclusion.
This includes arbitrary delays, denials of documents, or conditions linked to the applicant’s political stance. For those in vulnerable migratory situations, the inability to renew passports or obtain official documents can create legal risks in host countries, reinforcing the coercive effect.
Criminalization and International Mechanisms
A smaller number of cases, 23 (7.06%), involved extraterritorial criminal repression, where the justice system is used to open investigations, issue requests, or initiate proceedings against individuals outside the country.
Two cases involved the abusive use of international police mechanisms, suggesting the instrumentalization of cooperation channels to pursue opponents outside Venezuelan territory.
five cases (1.53%) involved the physical presence abroad of agents or para-state networks, three cases (0.92%) involved reprisals against family members in Venezuela, and two cases (0.61%) involved coercive migration measures in the host country.
Transnational Digital Repression
Un Mundo Sin Mordaza documented three cases of transnational digital repression (0.92%).
The report warns these are complex operations comprised of multiple incidents: coordinated networks of accounts, smear campaigns, identity theft, and the mass dissemination of content.
The low percentage doesn’t reflect lesser severity, but rather that each case involves multiple coordinated actions with broad transnational reach.
The document also emphasizes that the 326 cases represent a “verifiable minimum approximation.” Factors such as self-censorship, fear of reprisals against family members, migration consequences, or personal security risks limit public reporting even outside of Venezuela. The organization stated that the actual scale of the phenomenon could be larger, but the available information is sufficient.
