|
|
|
WHAT IS THE IACHR?
|
|
|
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) is
one of two bodies in the inter-American system for the promotion and
protection of human rights. The Commission has its headquarters in
Washington, D.C. The other human rights body is the Inter-American Court of
Human Rights, which is located in San José, Costa Rica. The IACHR is an autonomous organ of the Organization of
American States (OAS). Its mandate is found in the OAS Charter and the
American Convention on Human Rights. The IACHR represents all of the member
States of the OAS. It has seven members who act independently, without
representing any particular country. The members of the IACHR are elected by
the General Assembly of the OAS. The IACHR is a permanent body which meets in ordinary and
special sessions several times a year. The Executive Secretariat of the
IACHR carries out the tasks delegated to it by the IACHR and provides legal
and administrative support to the IACHR as it carries out its work. The mailing address of the Secretariat is: Inter-American Commission on Human Rights Brief History of the
Inter-American Human Rights System The inter-American human rights system was born with the
adoption of the
American
Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man in Bogotá, Colombia in
April of 1948. The American Declaration was the first international human
rights instrument of a general nature. The IACHR was created in 1959 and
held its first session in 1960. Since that time and until December 2011, the
Commission has held 143 sessions, some of them at its headquarters, others in
different countries of the Americas. By 1961, the IACHR had begun to carry out on-site visits to
observe the general human rights situation in a country or to investigate
specific situations. Since that time, the IACHR has carried out 92 on-site visits to
23 member States. In relation to its visits for the observation of the
general human rights situation of a country, the IACHR has published 60
special country reports to
date. In 1965, the IACHR was expressly authorized to examine
complaints or petitions regarding specific cases of human rights violations.
The IACHR has received thousands of petitions, which have
resulted in
19.423 petitions and cases which have been processed or are currently being
processed. (The procedure for the processing of individual cases is
described below). The final published reports of the IACHR regarding these
individual cases may be found in the Annual
Reports of the Commission or independently by country. In 1969, the
American Convention on Human Rights was adopted. The Convention
entered into force in 1978. As of August of 1997, it has been ratified by 24 countries: Argentina, Barbados, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa
Rica, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Grenada,
Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay,
Peru, Suriname, Uruguay and Venezuela. The Convention
defines the human rights which the ratifying States have agreed to respect
and ensure. The Convention also creates the Inter-American Court of Human
Rights and defines the functions and procedures of both the Commission and
the Court. The IACHR also possesses additional faculties which pre-date and
are not derived directly from the Convention, such as the processing of
cases involving countries which are still not parties to the Convention. What are the Functions and Powers of the Commission? The IACHR has the principal function of promoting the
observance and the defense of human rights. In carrying out its mandate, the
Commission: a)
Receives, analyzes and investigates individual petitions which allege human
rights violations, pursuant to Articles 44 to 51 of the Convention. This
procedure will be discussed in greater detail below. b)
Observes the general human rights situation in the member States and
publishes special reports regarding the situation in a specific State, when
it considers it appropriate. c)
Carries out on-site visits to countries to engage in more in-depth analysis
of the general situation and/or to investigate a specific situation. These
visits usually result in the preparation of a report regarding the human
rights situation observed, which is published and sent to the General
Assembly. d)
Stimulates public consciousness regarding human rights in the Americas. To
that end, carries out and publishes studies on specific subjects, such as:
measures to be taken to ensure greater independence of the judiciary; the
activities of irregular armed groups; the human rights situation of minors
and women, and; the human rights of indigenous peoples. e)
Organizes and carries out conferences, seminars and meetings with
representatives of Governments, academic institutions, non-governmental
groups, etc... in order to disseminate information and to increase knowledge
regarding issues relating to the inter-American human rights system. f)
Recommends to the member States of the OAS the adoption of measures which
would contribute to human rights protection. g)
Requests States to adopt specific "precautionary measures" to
avoid serious and irreparable harm to human rights in urgent cases. The
Commission may also request that the Court order "provisional
measures" in urgent cases which involve danger to persons, even where a
case has not yet been submitted to the Court. h)
Submits cases to the Inter-American Court and appears before the Court in
the litigation of cases. i)
Requests advisory opinions from the Inter-American Court regarding questions
of interpretation of the American Convention. |
