A pastor was
arrested by the Directorate-General for Military Counterintelligence (DGCIM) on charges of disobedience and the improper use of military decorations, badges and titles, as reported by Bibliatodo News on 17 October 2019. The pastor, who is also a major in the Venezuelan Air Force, was one of the coordinators speaking at the March for Jesus entitled "Venezuela, your time of freedom has arrived". In a separate report published on 14 October 2019, Christian Solidarity Worldwide"s blog "FoRB in Full" revealed that a church leader involved in food distribution to the poor had experienced a series of anonymous
threats delivered over the phone and to his front door throughout 2019.
Rossana Ramirez, persecution analyst at World Watch Research (WWR), comments: "Just a few weeks ago, Venezuela was appointed
membership of the UN Security Council (BBC News, 17 October 2019), an agency responsible for maintaining peace and security internationally. Considering the high number of human rights violations and the serious humanitarian emergency in Venezuela, its appointment to the Security Council has been strongly
criticized, especially by church leaders (Vida Nueva, 24 October 2019). For many - both Christians and the population in general - this appointment would seem to legitimize the government of Nicolas Maduro, leaving them abandoned to their fate by the international community. As a result, more such incidents of arrest and intimidation can be expected in Venezuela."
