PRESS RELEASE (*)
The Inter-American Court of Human Rights held its XXIII Special Session at its seat, in San Jose, Costa Rica, from 1 to 8 March, 1998. During this session, the Court considered the following matters:
1) Loayza Tamayo Case:
On 8 March, 1998, the Court resolved, unanimously, to reject as inadmissible the request of interpretation of its Judgment on the merits of the Loayza Tamayo Case, presented by the State of Peru. Amongst other considerations, the Court based its decision on the fact that the purpose of the request interposed by Peru was to modify the Judgment, and not to interpret it.
This Case was motivated on the facts that occurred as of 6 February, 1993, when Ms. María Elena Loayza-Tamayo was illegally arrested, tortured and treated in a cruel, inhuman and degrading manner. On 17 September, 1998, the Court decided that Peru had violated Articles 5 (Right to Humane Treatment), 7 (Right to Personal Liberty) and 8 (Right to a Fair Trial) of the American Convention on Human Rights, in relationship with Articles 1.1 and 2 of the same. The Court also ordered Peru to repair the damage inflicted on Ms. Loayza-Tamayo and her next-of-kin and to release her within a reasonable time, according to its domestic legislation. On 16 October, 1997, Peru released Ms. Loayza-Tamayo.
On December 19, 1997, Peru presented to the Court a request of interpretation of the aforementioned Judgment on merits, pursuant to Article 67 of the American Convention on Human Rights, which states that “[i]n case of disagreement as to the meaning or scope of the judgment, the Court shall interpret it at the request of any of the parties, provided the request is made within ninety days from the date of notification of the Judgment”.
2) Paniagua Morales et al. Case:
On 8 March, 1998, the Court passed judgment on the merits of this Case, in which it:
unanimously,
1. Declare[d] that the State of Guatemala violated Article 7 of the American Convention on Human Rights, in relationship with Article 1.1 of the same, to the detriment of Ana Elizabeth Paniagua Morales, Julián Salomón Gómez Ayala, William Otilio González Rivera, Pablo Corado Barrientos, Manuel de Jesús González López, Augusto Angárita Ramírez, Doris Torres Gil, and Marco Antonio Montes Letona.
unanimously,
2. Declare[d] that the State of Guatemala violated Article 4.1 of the American Convention on Human Rights, in relationship with the Article 1.1 of the same, to the detriment of Ana Elizabeth Paniagua Morales, Julián Salomón Gómez Ayala, William Otilio González Rivera, Pablo Corado Barrientos, and Manuel de Jesús González López.
unanimously,
3. Declare[d] that the State of Guatemala violated Articles 5.1 and 5.2 of the American Convention on Human Rights in relationship with Article 1.1 of the same, and Articles 1, 6, and 8 of the Interamerican Convention to Prevent and Punish Torture to the detriment of Ana Elizabeth Paniagua Morales, Julián Salomón Gómez Ayala, William Otilio González Rivera, Pablo Corado Barrientos, Manuel de Jesús González López, Augusto Angárita Ramírez, and Oscar Vásquez.
unanimously,
4. Declare[d] that the State of Guatemala violated Article 8.1 of the American Convention on Human Rights, in relationship with Article 1.1 of the same, to the detriment of Ana Elizabeth Paniagua Morales, Julián Salomón Gómez Ayala, William Otilio González Rivera, Pablo Corado Barrientos, Manuel de Jesús González López, and Erik Leonardo Chinchilla.
unanimously,
5. Declare[d] that the State of Guatemala violated Article 25 of the Convention on Human Rights, in relationship with Article 1.1 of the same, to the detriment of Ana Elizabeth Paniagua Morales, Julián Salomón Gómez Ayala, William Otilio González Rivera, Pablo Corado Barrientos, and Manuel de Jesús González López.
6. Declare[d] that the State of Guatemala must carry out a real and effective investigation to determine those responsible for the aforementioned violations to Human Rights and eventually, punish them.
unanimously,
7. Declare[d] that the State of Guatemala must repair the consequences of the aforementioned violations and pay fair compensation to the victims, and, should that be the case, their next-of-kin.
unanimously,
8. Order[ed] that the Reparations Stage be opened. For all relevant measures, the Court commission[ed] its President.
This Case, also known as the “White Van Case” (“Caso de la panel blanca”), was motivated on the facts that occurred between 1987 and 1988, when several civilians were kidnapped and killed by agents of the Treasury Guard (“Guardia de Hacienda”) of Guatemala. On 19 January, 1995, the Commission interposed the application before the Court and requested that it declare that Guatemala violated Articles 1.1 (Obligation to Respect Rights), 4 (Right to Life), 5 (Right to Humane Treatment), 7 (Right to Personal Liberty), 8 (Right to a Fair Trial) and 25 (Right to Judicial Protection) of the American Convention on Human Rights, to the detriment of the victims in this Case. The Commission also requested the Court to require Guatemala to identify, submit to trial and punish those responsible for said violations and compensate them according to what is provided for by Article 63.1 of the American Convention.
The composition of the Court during this Special Session was: Hernán Salgado-Pesantes (Ecuador), President; Antônio A. Cançado Trindade (Brazil), Vice President; Héctor Fix-Zamudio (Mexico); Alejandro Montiel-Argüello (Nicaragua); Máximo Pacheco-Gómez (Chile) and Alirio Abreu-Burelli (Venezuela). Edgar E. Larraondo-Salguero, Judge ad hoc appointed by Guatemala in the Paniagua Morales et al. Case, also participated. Also present was Manuel E. Ventura-Robles, Secretary, and Víctor M. Rodríguez-Rescia, Interim Deputy Secretary.
The Inter-American Court of Human Rights is an autonomous judicial institution of the Organization of the American States established in 1979. The Court is composed of jurists of the highest moral standards and competence in the area of human rights. Judges are elected by the OAS General Assembly and cannot exercise their functions for more than two six-year terms.
San Jose, 10 March, 1998.
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