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Venezuelan authorities have released more than 100 people arrested following July’s contested presidential election, according to a local rights group.<\/p>\n
“Up to now, we have verified 107 political prisoners, due to the post-electoral situation, released in Venezuela,” said Alfredo Romero of NGO Foro Penal.<\/p>\n
The group said more than 1,800 people were arrested for their role in mass protests after the July election.<\/p>\n
Electoral authorities loyal to President Nicol\u00e1s Maduro announced him the victor, but the claim has been widely rejected by the international community.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
After Maduro claimed victory, anti-government protests erupted.<\/a><\/p>\n Hundreds have been charged with crimes including terrorism, incitement to hatred and resistance to authority, according to Human Rights Watch.<\/a><\/p>\n Foro Penal said prisoners had been released at four different prisons. Videos published on social media showed prisoners being released to cheers from onlookers. <\/p>\n Maduro is set to begin his third six-year term in January. Official results for July’s election published by the National Electoral Council (CNE) claimed Maduro, 61, won 52% of the vote to opposition candidate Edmundo Gonz\u00e1lez’s 43%.<\/p>\n The opposition, however, said it had evidence Gonz\u00e1lez had won by a comfortable margin, and uploaded detailed voting tallies to the internet which suggest Gonz\u00e1lez beat Maduro convincingly.<\/p>\n The CNE said it could not publish the voting records because the data had been corrupted by hackers.<\/p>\n Gonz\u00e1lez was granted political asylum<\/a> in Spain in September. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n