Washington D.C., October 27th 2011

Excellency Ambassador Joel Antonio Hernandez García
Permanent Representative of Mexico in the OAS
President of the Special Working Group to Reflect on the Workings of the IACHR with a view to Strengthening the Inter-American Human Rights System

For your consideration:

 

The organizations signing below, members of the International Coalition of Organizations for the Human Rights in the Americas (from now on “the Coalition”), together with other organizations and people interested, write you for the purpose of informing the Special Working Group to Reflect on the Workings of the IACHR with a view to Strengthening the Inter-American Human Rights System (from now on “the Working Group”) several worries in relation to the process as well as the discussion issues in the framework of this Working Group.

The Inter-American Human Rights System (IHRS) is a heritage of the peoples and the American States; therefore, its destiny and development is not only a matter of the States. This is the reason why the users of the System and the victims of it must be considered main actors at the moment of its transformations, and its participation claims a dialog that results in the real consideration of their proposals. This process and its consequences might affect the hope of justice of thousands of victims and might put in risk the legacy that has been built for more than 60 years.

In relation to the reflection process, the Coalition has explained, in different stages of this and other processes, the need of an effective, real and balanced participation of the civil society that works directly with the victims and users. However, in the framework of the discussions of this Working Group there are several obstacles and limitations that make difficult a constructive dialogue for the strengthening of the System. Some of these limitations were evidenced in the fact that the organizations of the civil society were notified just on October 10th, with a period of five calendar days to express their interest in participating in a meeting intended to be held on October 28th, without considering that most of the civil society organizations do not have offices in Washington D.C., with the financial and logistic implications that it entails. In the same way, the Working Group has a constituted calendar with a wide number of meetings to treat main issues in which the participation of the civil society was incorporated in just one date, and with an extremely limited amount of time for the debate of complex issues.

In relation to some discussion issues, it is important to remember that the American Convention and the successive Inter-American treaties on Human Rights allow the protection organs to act with binding strength in several spaces of public and private life in the continent. The effectiveness of the Inter-American Commission and the Inter-American Court depends on its legitimacy as independent, competent and reliable organs for the protection of rights. The confidence of the Commission is based in its autonomy and objectiveness, principles that were recognized in its regulation as a body, and in the practices of the IHRS.

The independence requires objective and subjective guarantees of impartiality by the members of the Inter-American System at the time of making decisions. The objective impartiality or independence is related to the structural and working conditions of the Commission and the Court, which allows the development of an autonomous performance of its duties. The subjective impartiality requires the existence of an intimate conviction, free of prejudices and improper influences. The impartiality does not claim to be apart from the dialogue or the consultation with the different actors of the System, but to guarantee the autonomy in the making of the decisions despite the diversity of interests or eventual pressures, having as a main principle the best and greatest protection of the rights of the inhabitants of the hemisphere.

The regional protection, and the duty of the States as collective guarantors of this protection, is based upon the recognition of the need of giving a subsidiary appeal to guarantee the enjoyment of the fundamental rights of the individuals, in the certainty that the protection is the key to guarantee human dignity. Therefore, the main purpose of the protection system, and the reason of its existence, is to protect the rights of the people and repair the violations committed. In that sense, when the States sign the human rights treaties and create supranational mechanisms of vigilance, they recognize the inequality of the individuals in comparison with the state power, as well as the need of a complimentary system which provides answers of concrete justice.

Therefore, the system of individual cases constitutes an effective modality to reach justice, truth and reparation in the violations of human rights, constituting in a consubstantial element of the democratic life and the possibility of the development in our societies. The Inter-American instance is, on many occasions, the only way that the victims have.

The Inter-American Commission depends on powersof promotion and protection. Both powers are accomplished by mechanisms such as visits to the States by the rapporteurs and commissioners; special thematic reports; annual and special reports on States; the work done in combination with organisms of the International Human Right System, and others. This list does not consider the existence of other organs and mechanisms of the OAS itself with protection mandates. With a budget that hardly reaches the survival of the organs of protection and which is completed fundamentally by the extra-regional funds, requiring the Inter-American Commission to have greater activity of promotion or technical assistance to the States of the region is to impose upon it an impossible burden to accomplish, that will impact gravely the case system.

One of the better ways to promote human rights and to make and protection effective, is byfulfilling the decisions taken by the System’s organs and, in the way the States adequately adopt them in good faith, they would be making the most important step for the promotion of human rights and to strengthen the national judicial systems.

The protection measures have historically represented a key tool in the protection and guarantee of threatened human rights. The precautionary and provisional measures constitute an instrument for protection which safeguard the dignity, life, and rights in the States of America. It is a shared patrimony which the States should keep, protect, and extend. The adoption with good faith of the decisions is not only a moral and juridical obligation of the States, but it also constitutes the best way of promotion to change policies, practices and realities, as well as the protection to repair the violations committed and contribute to the safeguard of non-repetition.

The Inter-American protection mechanism not only keeps its validity, but has new challenges arising. Unfortunately, we are still facing grave violations of human rights: due to violence, weak institutions and deep degrees of inequality and exclusion, among other things, which characterize the hemisphere. The instances of the Commission and Inter-American Court are the only mechanisms with which the victims can count to reach justice. Its role is of irreplaceable importance to overcome the challenges associated to the development of the democratic institution. The victims’ desire for justice must find an institutionalism which guarantees the offer which is intrinsic to the social development and democracy.

The strengthening of the IHRS depends on an adequate and sufficient financing in order to reach the challenges that claim our realities. The reiterated political declarations must be consequent with the priority which is attributed to guarantee the effective functioning of the Inter-American System. The adequate financial contribution for the sustainability of the IHRS would demonstrate a true compromise of the States with the protection of the Human Rights.

In the framework of this reflection process, we reiterate the importance of preserving the legacy built by the societies of the hemisphere to guarantee human rights and life in democracy.

Sincerely, signing below,

Abilio López (Activista venezolano de los Derechos Humanos)

Abogadas y Abogados para la Justicia y los Derechos Humanos (México)

Acción Ciudadana contra el Sida (Venezuela)

Acción Campesina (Venezuela)

Acción Solidaria en VIH/Sida (Venezuela)

Ágora (Paraguay)

Amnistía Internacional

ANDHES (Abogados y Abogadas del Noroeste Argentino en Derechos Humanosy Estudios Sociales) (Argentina)

Articulación Regional Feminista por los Derechos Humanos y la Justicia de Género (Chile)

Asistencia legal por los derechos humanos (ASILEGAL) (México)

Asociación Civil BioParques (Venezuela)

Asociación Paz y Esperanza (Perú)

Asociación Pro Derechos Humanos (APRODEH) (Perú)

Associação Nacional dos Centros de Defesa - ANCED

Carlos Ayala Corao (Ex Presidente de la Comisión Interamericana de Derechos Humanos).

Cátedra Libre de Derechos Humanos - FFyL - UBA

Centro por la Justicia y el Derecho Internacional (CEJIL)

Centro Amazónico de Antropología y Aplicación Práctica – CAAAP- Perú

Conferencia Episcopal de Acción Social - CEAS Perú
CODEH-Pasco -Perú

Centro de Derechos Humanos de la Universidad Católica Andrés Bello(Venezuela)

Centro de Derechos Humanos Miguel Agustín Pro Juárez. (México).

Centro de Derechos y Desarrollo(CEDAL) (Perú).

Centro de Documentación en Derechos Humanos “Segundo Montes Mozo S.J.” (CSMM).(Ecuador). 

Centro de Estudios Legales y Sociales (CELS) (Argentina).

Centro de Políticas Públicas y Derechos Humanos Perú Equidad (Perú).

Centro Nicaragüense de Derechos Humanos (CENIDH) (Nicaragua).

Centro para la Paz y los Derechos Humanos de la UCV (Venezuela).

Civilis(Venezuela).

Claudia María Mejía Duque (Directora, Corporación Sisma Mujer, Colombia).

COFAVIC (Venezuela)

Colectivo de Abogados José Alvear Restrepo de Colombia (CCAJAR) (Colombia)

Colectivo de Derechos de Infancia y adolescencia.(Argentina).

Comisión Colombiana de Juristas

Comisión de Derechos Humanos(COMISEDH) (Perú).

Comisión Ecuménica de Derechos Humanos (CEDHU) (Ecuador).

Comisión Mexicana de Defensa y Promoción de DH (México).

Comisión Nacional de Derechos Humanos de la Federación de Colegios de Abogados de Venezuela (Venezuela).

Comité de los Derechos del Niño (Uruguay).

Conferencia Episcopal de Acción Social (CEAS) (Perú).

Control Ciudadano (Venezuela).

Convite (Venezuela).

Coordinadora Nacional de Derechos Humanos(CNDDHH)(Perú).

Coordinadora por los Derechos de la Infancia y la Adolescencia (CDIA) (Paraguay).

Corporación para la Defensa de los Derechos Humanos del Magdalena MedioCREDHOS (Colombia).

Corporación para la Defensa y Promoción de los Derechos Humanos REINICIAR (Colombia).

Diversidad e Igualdad a través de la Ley (DIVERLEX) (Venezuela).

Elba Beatriz Núñez Ibáñez (Activista venezolana de los Derechos Humanos).

Erika Rosales (Espacio Público, Venezuela).

Ernesto Diaz

Federación Internacional de los Derechos Humanos (FDIH).

Feliciano Reyna Ganteaume (Activista venezolano de los Derechos Humanos).

Foro Por La Vida (Venezuela)

Fórum DCA/PR (Brasil)

Fundación Ecuménica para el Desarrollo y la Paz (FEDEPAZ). (Perú)

Fundación Ensayos para el Aprendizaje Permanente (FEPAP) (Venezuela)

Grupo de Mujeres de San Cristóbal de las Casas (México)

Grupo Interdisciplinario por los Derechos Humanos (GIDH) (Colombia)

IELSUR (Uruguay)

Instituto de Defensa Legal (IDL) (Perú)

Instituto de Derechos Humanos Universidad Centroamericana (El Salvador)

Instituto de Seguridad y Derechos Humanos (Perú)

Jaime Córdoba Triviño (Ex Presidente de la Corte Constitucionaly ex Defensor del Pueblo, Colombia)

Jesús M Casal (Abogado constitucionalista y profesor universitario venezolano).

Joanne Mariner

Juan Facundo Hernández. (Asociación Civil Surcos, Argentina)

Justiça Global  (Brasil)

Justicia y Paz de Colombia (Colombia)

Liliana Alonso

María de Jesús Gómez Matus (Secretaria Ejecutiva de la Federación de Codeni, Nicaragua)

María Ximena Castilla Jiménez (Defensora de Derechos Humanos)

Nora Pulido. (Profesora de la Cátedra Libre de Derechos Humanos de la Facultad deFilosofía y Letras Universidad de Buenos Aires)

Observatorio Venezolano de Prisiones (Venezuela)

Oficina Jurídica Para la Mujer de Cochabamba (Bolivia)

Paz Activa (Venezuela)

Pedro Nikken (Ex juez de la Corte Interamericana de Derechos Humanos)

Plataforma Interamericana de Derechos Humanos, Democracia y Desarrollo (PIDHDD)

Programa Venezolano de Educación Acción en Derechos Humanos (PROVEA) (Venezuela)

Red latinoamericana y caribeña por la defensa de los derechos de los niños, niñas y adolescentes (REDLAMYC)

Red por los derechos de la infancia en México (REDIM) (México)

Senos Ayuda (Venezuela)

Servicio Jesuita a Refugiados (SJR) (Venezuela)

Sinergia (Venezuela)

Tutela Legal del Arzobispado de San Salvador (El Salvador)

Unión Afirmativa (Venezuela)

Vicaria de Derechos Humanos de Caracas(Venezuela)

Vicaría de Jaén - Perú

Yanette Bautista (DirectoraFundación Nydia Erika Bautista para los Derechos Humanos)