35. In the first place, the Commission observes that the character of presumed victim
attributed to Mauricio Herrera Ulloa, is not disputed at all, since he fits within the scope of the
definition of person pursuant to Article 1(2) of the Convention, which stipulates that “person
means every human being.” Moreover, Mr. Herrera Ulloa, as the subject of the judicial
proceedings initiated by the diplomat Féliz Przedborski, is directly affected by the judicial
decisions of November 12, 1999 and January 24, 2001, and by the order of execution dated
February 27, 2001, inter alia. Pursuant to these judgments, he was ascribed responsibility for
committing various offenses and ordered to execute the sentence. Finally, the IACHR is fully
competent from the standpoint of ratione materiae with regard to Mauricio Herrera Ulloa, to
ascertain whether there were violations of his rights as established by the American
Convention.
36. As regards the legal standing of Fernán Vargas Rohrmoser, the State contends that Fernán
Vargas Rohrmoser, as the legal representative of “La Nación,” acted on behalf of a legal person
and not on his own behalf, and that therefore the Commission is not competent ratione
personae to consider the petition. The petitioners allege that the individual rights of Mr. Vargas
Rohrmoser were directly affected by the Execution and Prevention Order dated February 21,
2001, which required the presumed victims to execute the order “immediately, … peremptorily,
irrevocably, without delay.” At the same time, they allege that the judicial decision of April 3,
2001 warned the presumed victims of the possibility of being charged with the crime of
disobedience of authority in the event they should fail to comply with the judgment, which
would entail imposition of a criminal sanction or a prison sentence for Mr. Vargas Rohrmoser if
he should fail to execute the judgment, which would directly violate his rights protected under
the Convention. The State alleges that the Execution and Prevention Order is binding on Mr.
Vargas Rohrmoser exclusively in his capacity as the legal representative of “La Nación,” and
not in a personal capacity, and that noncompliance on his part does not entail a criminal
sanction or prison sentence against him, since execution of the sentence is subject to
commutation under Costa Rican national law.
37. The Commission is of the opinion that to determine whether or not Mr. Vargas Rohrmoser
was a victim will require a complex analysis both of conventional laws, such as laws applicable
to the Costa Rican national jurisdiction, and of the jurisprudence of the Commission and the
Court, which is closely linked to decisions to be adopted by the IACHR on the merits of the
case. Therefore, the Commission is reserving its decision on the qualification of Fernán Vargas
Rohrmoser as a victim for the later stage of the proceedings on the substance of the matter.
38. Therefore, for the purposes of admissibility, the Commission decides that it is competent
ratione personae insofar as Mauricio Herrera Ulloa is concerned, and it is deferring its decision
on Fernán Vargas Rohrmoser to a later stage, when it reaches a determination on the merits of
this petition.
b.
Competence ratione materiae
39. Having identified the presumed victim in this petition, the Commission will now consider
the question of its competence by reason of the subject matter of the reported violations.
40. In this regard, the Commission notes that the judgment of November 12, 1999 was
binding on the journalist, Mauricio Herrera Ulloa and “La Nación” newspaper jointly, since it
stated that the journalist, Mauricio Herrera Ulloa, was the author of four crimes of publication
of offensive material constituting defamation and sentenced him jointly and severally with La
Nación to payment of a separate fine for moral prejudice. At the same time, the judgment
established similar obligations for Mauricio Herrera Ulloa and “La Nación” newspaper, as it
ordered the former to publish the operative part of the judgment and the latter to withdraw
the link between the articles in dispute written by Mauricio Herrera and establish a new link
between said articles and the operative part of the conviction. In view of these facts, which are
not disputed by the parties, the Commission considers that it is competent to determine
whether they constitute violations of Article 13 of the American Convention.
41. Consequently, the Commission finds that the petition reports violations of human rights
protected by the American Convention. Therefore, the Commission is competent ratione
materiae to consider the petition.
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