Article 12 of the Organic Law on Refugees and Asylees provides that the primary institution responsible for implementing laws and policies related to refugees and other forcibly displaced persons in Venezuela is the National Commission for Refugees (Comisión Nacional para los Refugiados, CONARE). This inter-institutional body is chaired by a representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and includes voting representatives from the Ministry of Interior and Justice and the Ministry of Defence. The Commission is also supported by representatives of the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the Ombudsperson’s Office, and the National Assembly, who participate with speaking rights. Through this multi-sectoral composition, CONARE is responsible for overseeing refugee status determination procedures and coordinating the implementation of the national legal framework for refugee protection at the national level.
Its roles are: i) To guide and coordinate the actions necessary to provide protection, assistance and legal support to asylum-seekers and refugees; ii) To examine and decide on applications for refugee status determination, as well as on the cessation and withdrawal of refugee status, and to rule on the expulsion of refugees, in accordance with the procedures and criteria established in this Law, its Regulations, and the applicable international instruments; iii) To draft and adopt its own internal rules of procedure.