Now that Nicolas Maduro is the President of Venezuela, most hopes of political reform in Venezuela have been dashed, at least for the next six years. This blog has addressed the issue of political oppression and persecution in Venezuela time and time and time again, as have many journalists and human rights organizations. In many instances, political persecution has taken the form of Venezuela's misuse of INTERPOL's Red Notices in order to further the country's goals of nationalism and political oppression.

While all outward appearances indicate that INTERPOL has become wary of many Red Notices that are initiated or requested by Venezuela, particularly those that concern charges of easily fabricated financial crimes, there remains plenty of room for concern that Venezuelan authorities will continue to attempt to abuse their access to INTERPOL's tools.

Because of the fact that INTERPOL's I-Link system provides member countries with the ability to instantly issue Red Notices, which are not subject to an immediate "human" check, countries that do not honor their obligations to properly utlize INTERPOL's tools can - and do- obtain Red Notices improperly. If INTERPOL authorities are unaware of the illicit nature of the Red Notice, it remains active at least until the problem is brought to INTERPOL's attention and reviewed.

Nicolas Maduro campaigned on a pledge to continue with Chavez' policies, and there is every indication that he will do just that, including the misuse of their access to INTERPOL's databases.

As always, questions and comments are welcomed.