The Local Dispatch features selected stories from local journalists and media organizations who are reporting news from deep inside Venezuela and have no visibility abroad, even when they paint the most accurate picture of what’s actually happening in the country. The Dispatch is published weekly.

Peace judges: a dull ceremony in the communal system

On Sunday, December 15, chavismo held elections for “judges of peace,” though the public seems to be more focused on the upcoming January 10 inauguration. Pro-regime outlets like Telesur and Últimas Noticias touted “massive participation,” but CNE Rector Carlos Quintero, a co-orchestrator of the July 28 electoral fraud, didn’t bother to disclose participation numbers. Reports from El Pitazo revealed widespread public apathy in Lara, Táchira, Portuguesa, and Zulia. Quintero’s statement claimed the election of 28,486 primary and deputy peace judges.

Why it matters: The “justice of the peace” role, part of chavismo’s communal framework, is meant to handle minor disputes between neighbors that don’t require legal expertise, and facilitate quick resolutions—as lawyer Nilyan Santana explained to Crónica Uno. According to Jorge Rodríguez, these judges—spread across 5,000 communal circuits, political-territorial zones largely misunderstood by the general population—are intended to “revitalize communal power” and forge new economic relations between neighborhoods and communes.

However, these judges will neither be independent nor automatically appointed. Instead, they will be trained by the National School of Magistracy, the educational arm of the Supreme Tribunal of Justice (TSJ). Approval will come from the TSJ’s National Coordination of Communal Justice, led by judge Tania D’Amelio, who presides over the TSJ’s Constitutional Chamber after serving as CNE rector for 13 years. Training is set to begin in January 2025.

According to Professor Miguel González, this creates a “top-down, centralized justice system.” The new communal justice law explicitly bans candidates affiliated with civil organizations such as unions or guilds and disqualifies those deemed to promote “hatred” or “treason.”

More information: Chavismo’s insistence on propping up its deteriorating communal structures comes at a time when the PSUV is at its weakest as a grassroots political organization. Sitting beside Maduro on Wednesday, D’Amelio remarked that judges should not seek clients in the community but instead promote forgiveness and peace.

Chavista infighting in Valencia’s mayoral office

According to El Carabobeño, PSUV leadership reportedly asked Valencia’s Mayor Julio Fuenmayor to resign. The reasons remain undisclosed, but Fuenmayor’s and the mayoralty’s social media accounts have disappeared. Within 48 hours, chavista authorities convened an extraordinary session to appoint replacements. Dina Castillo, previously a tourism authority under Rafael Lacava’s administration, was sworn in as mayor. Overseeing the transition is José Parada, president of Gas Drácula, a company managing 14 PDVSA gas stations transferred to Carabobo’s governorship.

More information: Bajo La Lupa reported a corruption scheme likely tied to Fuenmayor’s fall. Gilberto Ceballos, head of the Municipal Environment Institute, faces an arrest warrant, while his brother, Óscar Ceballos, has been detained by the National Police.

Disappearances and arrests continue days before Christmas Eve

As Christmas approaches, reports of disappearances and arrests by the regime continue to surface. Ramón Bejarano, regional coordinator for Vente Venezuela, has been missing since December 17 after planning an event with CVG retirees in Puerto Ordaz. Carlos Azuaje, a Voluntad Popular activist in Barinas, was intercepted at a checkpoint en route to Bolívar. Last week, SEBIN agents detained Vente Venezuela leaders Édgar Sarabia and Álvaro Mora in Bolívar as well.

In Caracas, Jesús Armas, part of the Con Venezuela campaign team, is being held at the National Police headquarters, while municipal leader Luis Palocz has been arrested. Diosdado Cabello has already linked Palocz to “selective attacks in Chacao” allegedly supported by the Tren de Aragua. Cabimas Mayor Nabil Maalouf of Un Nuevo Tiempo has also been detained since December 10.

Recommended reads:

• La Nación: Patients overwhelm Venezuela’s psychiatric system, which suffers from a lack of beds, sedatives, and functional facilities.
• Radio Fe y Alegría: Mercury contamination in the Cunucunuma River poisons waters in Yekuana territory, Amazonas.
• La Gran Aldea: Former PROVEA director Rafael Uzcátegui warns that Venezuelans should brace for the darkest chapter in the nation’s history.
• Correo del Caroní: CVG Bauxilum workers sound the alarm over the imminent collapse of mining operations in Los Pijiguaos, Bolívar.