Delcy Rodríguez has proposed an amnesty law that would cover political prisoners detained throughout the "Chavista period."
According to foreign media, the Venezuelan president presented the initiative on Friday during the opening ceremony of the judicial year at the Supreme Court.
Delcy Rodríguez instructed the Judicial Revolution Commission to prepare the legal text in the coming hours for a vote in the National Assembly.
The law will not include those convicted of murder, drug trafficking or human rights violations.
Rodríguez also urged that "revenge and hatred" not prevail among those regaining their freedom.
According to the Venezuelan NGO Foro Penal, there are currently 711 political prisoners.
The government had repeatedly denied this figure, describing the detainees as terrorists.
Since January 8, the organization has documented 302 releases, although official figures vary: the interior minister speaks of 808 releases since December, while the prosecutor general mentions 643 precautionary measures.
In a post on social media, María Corina Machado, winner of the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize, attributed the decision to US pressure.
"It's not something the regime wanted to do voluntarily," she said.
Venezuela has not passed an amnesty since 2007, when Hugo Chávez pardoned those involved in the 2002 coup. A parliamentary attempt in 2016 was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. In 2020, Nicolas Maduro granted 110 pardons by decree ahead of legislative elections that the majority opposition boycotted. /Telegrafi/
