Days ago, I received a heartbreaking letter written by one of the nearly 1,000 political hostages still held by the Delcy Rodriguez dictatorship in Venezuela today.

They describe a daily horror at the Yare penitentiary complex located about an hour drive from Caracas. It is a horror that few of those who live under the privilege of western democracy can't even fathom.

The writer wanted to make sure the world knows the names of his torturers:

Obviously, I am holding the writer's identity because they face extreme retaliation for sending this letter out to the world. I have translated the text and left it exactly as it was beautifully written:

'Hell: I've heard several definitions of it, but it is best defined by the words: Yare III. And these four people in charge make sure of it:

• Director Angel Castro "alpha I"
• Sub director Samir Camacho "Alpha II"
• Mayor: Freddy Mendoza (Mark)
• Capitan Héctor Gutiérrez (Orión)

Yare III is a place steeped in death, torture, all kinds of mistreatment, extortion, blackmail, and other atrocities. Some prisoners go weeks or months without seeing the sun. Political prisoners and common criminals are housed together here, regardless of the consequences.

The welcome to the prison begins with a series of beatings (between 10 and 12) with heavy wooden planks bearing names like: Constitution, ICC, Human Rights, etc. Those tortured in this way are unable to sit for weeks; their skin is ragged from the blows. Then, they are taken naked to cells called "the little tigers," which are nothing more than small, 1x2.5 meter rooms, sealed by a metal door like a safe, making them extremely dark, foul-smelling, and infested with cockroaches, mice, and every other insect imaginable. People can barely breathe.

Still, up to 10 people have been forced into these places at once for weeks at a time. These "little tigers" are located a few steps from the entrance of each building, one on each side. After their time in the "little tiger," new prisoners are taken to the cells, to make space for the new arrivals to receive the same cruel treatment.

Some are lucky enough not to be beaten upon arrival, but others face being hung or suspended by their cuffed hands from a fence, left there for days and nights on end. During their stay at this place, it is common to see people hanged as a form of punishment by the aforementioned individuals...

Each building or module was designed to hold 108 people; however, Yare III, with its four modules, houses approximately 1,200 inmates. This results in total overcrowding in the cells. Adding to the problem, the temperature in Yare hovers around 38°C, and we are not allowed to leave our cells to exercise or stretch our arms.

The families who come to visit the prisoners don't have it easy either. After collecting money for extortion, they experience a truly traumatic ordeal upon entering the prison for visits. They are yelled at and mistreated by Freddy and Samir, as well as some of the female guards. What they have to endure is indescribable; it's heartbreaking to see them enter in tears after each visit, feeling humiliated by these unspeakable individuals.

Something has to be done, and I'm trying to do my part, knowing that I could even lose my life.

Living in this system, extortion is rampant. The four mentioned guards made a list of prisoners with delicate health issues to transfer them to another facility. Since several have died, Castro said, "If they're going to die, let them die somewhere else, not here..." These people were extorted for cement, rebar, air conditioning units, etc.

According to the guards, everyone who passes through here must leave a mark, and everyone must pay to get out of this hellhole. They say it's not wrong to extort, or, as they call it, "collaborate," since they have permission from the Minister Julio García Zerpa, whose motto is "every prison must be self-sustaining."

The people who paid haven't been transferred yet, yet the prison is almost completely remodeled, including the kitchen and infirmary. It looks like a semi-clinic, all thanks to the extortion.

Inside Yare III, there's a place where they sold rooms for between $100 and $600. It's called Module I. A group of prisoners were taken there after paying for better conditions, but they've also been engulfed by hell... Sometimes they're taken out to have their pictures taken, to make it seem like they're complying with the rules.

There's no time for recreation, education, or anything of the sort, because, in Castro's words, "this is a maximum-security prison where human rights don't exist."

Many people have died from the heat, the confinement, the beatings, the lack of medical attention, the terrible food, and more... Anyone who dares to speak out ends up beaten by Orion and his henchmen and then sent to "The little tiger" ... Recently, a political prisoner named Marcos was tortured. Orion tried to beat him, and when he resisted, he was brutally beaten by a group of guards. Then they took him to "The little tiger", half-dead. He spent a few days there and was finally transferred to another prison; they say it was "Guaicaipuro"...

If they were to find this letter on me... I once heard a phrase: "If someone has the ability to do something, they have the responsibility to do it."

The evil of these people is... Words cannot describe it.

VENEZUELA NEEDS TO BE FREE. I urge anyone who can do what needs to be done, to do it now!

So much misery is unjust, enough is enough...

I am just another prisoner...'