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ePaper created 2015-11-10, 17:27:36 | version 1.33.00
REDACTED Page 159 of 190 Altamira, giving them food and water.696 Nevertheless, González was charged with conspiracy, possession of explosives and arms trafficking.697 Mr. González was put on pretrial detention in a SEBIN facility. Having spent almost one year in prison, he was informed by the authorities that he was going to be transferred to a dangerous prison. He hanged himself on 12 March, 2015, before being transferred. His lawyer argued that he was subjected to psychological torture. 698 The IACHR expressed particular concern over González’s death. It stated that the death took place under conditions that had been repeatedly denounced by specialized UN agencies and other organizations. The Commission noted that the SEBIN facilities had been persistently denounced for the alleged torture and ill-treatment of prisoners. 699 xiv)Leopoldo López and Daniel Ceballos The case of former mayors Leopoldo López and Daniel Ceballos deserves a special mention. Both of them, leaders of the political party Voluntad Popular, have been subjected to torture since the beginning of their detentions in February and March 2014, respectively, at the military prison of Ramo Verde, Miranda State directed by Colonel Violoria of the Venezuelan Army. López and Ceballos have been detained in isolation during all their time in the prison. In the case of López, he is allowed one hour of solitary work out per day, but he remains in his cell in solitary isolation for twenty-three hours a day. These imprisonment conditions which have existed since February 2014, constitute an "extended isolation" term.700 The isolation of López has the three elements that characterize the solitary confinement. In this regard, the terms of absolute isolation have been imposed in different occasions as punishment: for writing letters, for the presence of journalists in the prison, for a phone call and for the protest called “el barrotazo,” during which López and Ceballos demonstrated their discontent by hitting 696 REPORTERO24. (2015) REPRESIÓN: Muere en prisión Rodolfo González “El Aviador.”; MEZA, A. (2015) Hallado muerto Rodolfo González, prisionero político venezolano; VENEZUELA AL DÍA. (2015) Provea denunciará ante la CIDH tortura psicológica contra Rodolfo González 697 VYAS, K. and FORERO, J. (2015) Maduro Critic Rodolfo González Kills Self in Venezuela Detention. Wall Street Journal. [Online] 13 March. Available from: http://www.wsj.com/articles/maduro- critic-rodolfo-gonzalez-kills-self-in-venezuela-detention-1426290748 [Accessed 26 October, 2015] 698 VYAS, K. and FORERO, J. (2015) Maduro Critic Rodolfo González Kills Self in Venezuela Detention 699 IACHR Expresses Deep Concern over the Situation regarding the Rule of Law in Venezuela 700 GENSER, J. and MAES, J.A. (2014) White Paper on the Case of Leopoldo López Mendoza Citizen of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela v. Government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. Perseus Strategy. [Online] 21 July. Available from: http://perseus-strategies.com/wp- content/uploads/2014/09/Lopez-White-Paper-4.16.2015-English.pdf [Accessed 26 October, 2015] pp.30-33