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We want to welcome Andrea Jimenez, a journalist arrested by the National Gard the past Monday
Miss Jimenez, Good afternoon and welcome to NTN24
Hi, good afternoon to everybody.
Andrea, we want to know what hapenned to you?
In the morning of Monday February the 24th I was at home sleeping and I heard loud noise.
and I decided to go out to see what was happening. I found out that there was a protest next the residential complex where I live in San Antonio de Los Altos.
I was inside the residential complex watching the protesters. Some other neighbors came out and watched it with me.
Seconds after officials of the National Guard entered the neighborhood and they arrested all of us.
They entered the neighborhood and under what charges or why did they say they were arresting you?
well in that moment when they arrested us, they didn't say anything but they wouldn't let us talk either.
I was wearing my pajamas, i didn't even change my clothes because I went outside for a minute to see what was happening.
all I wanted to tell them is that I was wearing my pajamas, but they wouldn't let us speak. They were telling us to shut up.
The morning after when they took us to the audience in the court, they accused us of incitement to violence, resistance of authority and ...obstruction of a public throughway.
Which was an absolute lie because we were not even in the location where the protest was taking place.
Andrea once they took you under custody, how did they treat you? What happened? To what place did they take you?
Please tell us about this experience that you had to go trough.
The experience itself was the worst in my life. The officials of the National Gard took us all under arrest and they got us out of the van several times
I was there with 13 more neighbors. From which 12 were men and one was a woman, so we were only two women.
All men were brutally beaten many times in front of me. They never assaulted me physically but they did it verbally during the whole detention from the National Guard.
They threatened to kill and *** me, and also said they were going to cut several parts of my body and promised us we were never going to get out of there.
and too many other obscene things.
Andrea, what did you feel? what did you think when you were going through this situation? When you were not even in you working hours as a journalist?
well in that moment I didn't want to mention that I was a journalist because we all know the grudge they hold against my profession.
So I decided to stay quiet and go as any another neighbor. I believe that was the right decision.
In that moment I was only frightened. All I saw on the officers' eyes was hate, a lot of grudge and a lot of resentment. I felt they could do anything they wanted to do with us.
In fact I thought, like they said, that they were going to kill us and I believed we were never going to get out of there.
But thanks god that wasn't the case. But it was 42 hours, the worst of my life, where a constant fear was all I felt.
Andrea how did you manage to be sent free? and what happened to the people that was with you?
We had the support of the international criminal lawyers forum. They were not allowed to see us or talk to us which is a crime because any detainee should be allowed to talk to their lawyer from the moment they are arrested.
We were not allowed to talk to them at any time. I believe it was basically a kidnapping because they wouldn't let us see our family or lawyer but only minutes before the audience.
We explained briefly what happened to the lawyers, which they already knew because some other neighbors that saw everything happened talked to them . Everybody knew what had happened.
I told them the truth, this was an injustice. Just by telling the truth I was supposed to be able to get out because there was no other way. I gave my statement and they set us free but in probation.
I told them the truth, this was an injustice. Telling the truth I had to be able to get out because there was no other way. We said our statement and they set us free but in probation.
On the probation they gave us two precautionary measures to the whole group.
This was Andrea Jimenez, a journalist arrested by the National Gard the past Monday. I would like to thank you for sharing with us this terrible testimony. Thank you very much Andrea.
Thanks to you.