Ángel Godoy freed and returns home to Los Teques after a year in prison

Ángel Godoy, a 52-year-old political activist and columnist, was freed last Wednesday and returned to his home in Los Teques, about 40 minutes outside Caracas. After a year behind bars he apologized to his son for missing his high school graduation; his son told him, "Now you are," and asked him to help study for university.

Mr. Godoy was detained after writing columns that angered the government, the family said, and was accused of terrorism and of inciting armed actions and hatred — charges he has denied. Masked men in an unmarked van seized him as he arrived home, his family said; he was held at several prisons, including El Helicoide, and the family did not hear from him for 25 days and did not see him for 96 days.

The family had been waiting 371 days for his release; their hopes rose earlier this month after President Nicolás Maduro was seized by U.S. forces in Caracas and the Venezuelan government announced it would start freeing "an important number" of political prisoners. To date, only 143 of an estimated nearly 900 political prisoners have been released, according to the human rights group Foro Penal, and much of the government's machinery of repression remains largely intact.

Although he is free, Venezuelan authorities continue to control Mr. Godoy: he is prohibited from leaving the country and must appear in court every 30 days.

Key Topics

World, Ángel Godoy, Los Teques, Caracas, Nicolás Maduro, El Helicoide