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JOINT PRESS RELEASE
On
February 22, 2001 a meeting was held with the following participants at
the headquarters of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR),
which is currently holding its 110th regular session:
representing the Peruvian State were Minister of Justice Diego García-Sayán
and Ambassador Manuel Rodríguez Cuadros, Permanent Representative of Peru
to the Organization of American States. (OAS). The IACHR was represented
by its president, Dean Claudio Grossman; First Vice-President, Dr. Juan Méndez;
Second Vice-President, Dr. Marta Altolaguirre, and Commissioners Robert
Goldman and Peter Laurie, as well as the Executive Secretary of the IACHR,
Jorge E. Taiana. Minister
Garcia-Sayán, speaking on behalf of the Peruvian government, indicated
that in the framework of Peru’s new government policy on the protection
of human rights and as part of a series of measures the current
administration has been taking nationally and internationally to restore
the democratic institutional framework, rebuild the rule of law, and
observe human rights in Peru, the Government of Peru is presenting a broad
proposal to settle a significant number of cases (165), more than 50 per
cent of the Peru-related cases before the IACHR. The
Inter-American Commission reiterated its acknowledgment of the auspicious
actions being taken by the transition government of Peru’s respected
President Valentín Paniagua, the renowned members of his cabinet, and the
honorable Congress of the Republic of Peru, to redefine and strengthen key
State institutions. The IACHR added that this is part of a series of very
positive steps the current Peruvian government has taken and complements
other equally-important measures adopted, such as the renewal of Peru’s
acceptance of the contentious jurisdiction of the Inter-American Court of
Human Rights, Peru’s recent signing of the Inter-American
Convention on the Forced Disappearance of Persons[KFC1],
and compliance with the recommendations and precautionary measures
formulated by the Commission. The
IACHR praised and welcomed the Peruvian government’s initiative, the
purpose of which is to offer solutions to a significant number of cases,
including the following groups: a.
Cases in which the State will promote a friendly settlement in
keeping with the provisions of Articles (48)(1)(f) and 49 of the American
Convention: 10.918 (Sindicato Unitario de Trabajadores de la Educación en
el Perú); 12.033 (Rómulo Torres Ventocilla); 12.035 (Pablo Ignacio Livia
Robles); 12.084 (Sitramun); and 12.191 (María Mamérita Mestanza Chávez). b.
Cases in which the State will acknowledge responsibility and move
to restore the affected rights and/or provide reparations for the damages
caused: 11.149 (Augusto Alejandro Zúñiga Paz); 11.277 (Eduardo C.
Carrillo et al.); 11.756 (Leonor
La Rosa Bustamante); 11.045 (La Cantuta); and 12.095 (Mariela Barreto
Riofano). c.
Cases in which the Commission made recommendations in a final
report adopted and published in accordance with Article 51 of the American
Convention: Attached is a list of the 102 reports (involving 133 cases)
referred to here, for which the State has committed to seeking
comprehensive solutions to the human rights violations found by the IACHR
in those reports. d.
Cases in which the Commission made recommendations in reports
adopted in accordance with Article 50 of the Convention. This involves 26
cases recently decided that have not yet been published. The State has
committed to pursuing comprehensive solutions to the human rights
violations found by the IACHR in those reports. e.
Instances in which the State will request the closing of cases for
which it feels the underlying grounds no longer exist: The State will
request files for the following cases: 11.051 (detained
persons-disappearances); 11.133 (Faustino Huamaní Rodríguez); 11.192 (Yehude
Simon Munaro); 11.806 (Demetrio Limonier Chávez Peñaherrera); 11.849 (Leoncio
Florián López et al.); 11.885 (Guido Pennano Allison); 12.120 (Foro Democrático);
12.209 (Guillermo Cabala Rossand); and 12.290 (Jorge Mufarech). The
Commission will notify the petitioners of the request and will decide
thereon in a timely fashion. Both
the Government of Peru and the Inter-American Commission understand that
the settlements being sought will be reached, bearing in mind the
international obligations the Peruvian State has assumed in exercising its
sovereignty and the following specific criteria: recognition of the
Peruvian State’s responsibility in cases in which human rights have been
impacted; provision of reparations for damages and consequences to the
victims or family members for violation of the victims’ human rights;
execution of the investigations appropriate in the autonomous exercise of
judicial authority and determining responsibility in those cases; adoption
of the precautionary measures recommended by the Commission; and
implementation of friendly settlement procedures, with the participation
of the IACHR, the petitioners, and the victims or their family members.
At
the close of the proceedings, Minister Diego García-Sayán and the
Inter-American Commission on Human Rights highlighted the current
excellent institutional relationship between Peru and the IACHR,
characterized by mutual respect and cooperation. Both parties agreed to
continue to work together in the future for the promotion and protection
of human rights. Washington,
D.C., February 22, 2001
APPENDIX
A TO THE FEBRUARY 22, 2001 PRESS RELEASE
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