INTRODUCTION OF THE CASE AND PURPOSE OF THE CONTROVERSY 1. The case submitted to the Court. – On July 26, 2019, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (hereinafter “the Commission”) submitted to the Inter-American Court the Garzón Guzmán v. Ecuador case. This case is related to the alleged international responsibility of the Republic of Ecuador (hereinafter “the State” or “Ecuador”) for acts related to the forced disappearance of César Gustavo Garzón Guzmán, which occurred on November 10, 1990 in Quito, Ecuador. According to the Commission, there are sufficient elements that permit the conclusion that, at the moment of his disappearance, Mr. Garzón Guzmán was deprived of his freedom by State agents. These acts occurred in a context of forced disappearances by State agents against persons identified as subversive, especially the members of the “Alfaro Vive Carajo” and “Montoneras Patria Libre” groups, which, added to the refusal of the authorities to recognize the detention and the evidence in the record, led the Commission to conclude that there was a cover-up of what occurred. Thus, the Commission alleged the violation of the rights to the recognition of a juridical personality, to life, to personal integrity, to personal freedom, to judicial guarantees and to judicial protection enshrined in the American Convention on Human Rights and Article I(a) and (b) of the Inter-American Convention on Forced Disappearance of Persons, to the detriment of Mr. Garzón Guzmán. In addition, the case refers to the alleged violation of the mental and moral integrity of his next of kin. 2. Procedure before the Commission. – The procedure before the Commission was the following: a. Petition. On November 8, 1994, the Ecumenical Commission for Human Rights (hereinafter “the representative”) presented a petition before the InterAmerican Commission. b. Report on Admissibility. On July 12, 2010, the Commission issued Report 70/10, in which it declared the case admissible. On July 20, 2010, the Commission notified the parties that the case had been ruled admissible and placed itself at their disposal with a view to reaching a friendly settlement. c. Merits Report. On March 18, 2017, the Commission adopted Merits Report No. 22/17, pursuant to Article 50 of the Convention (hereinafter “Merits Report” or “Report No. 22/17”), in which it reached a series of conclusions and made several recommendations to the State. d. Notification to the State. On April 26, 2017, the Commission notified the Merits Report to the State, granting it a period of two months to report on its compliance with the recommendations. The State requested an extension, which was granted by the Commission. It subsequently requested seven new extensions. After more than two years without receiving information on any significant progress in compliance with the recommendations, the Commission decided not to grant any more extensions and to submit the case to the InterAmerican Court. 3. Submission to the Court. – On July 26, 2019, the Commission submitted all of the facts and the alleged human rights violations described in Report Nº 22/17 to the Inter-American Court because of “the need to obtain justice and reparation for the victims.”1 The Court notes, The Commission appointed Commissioner Esmeralda Arosemena de Troitiño and then Executive Secretary, Paulo Abrão, as its delegates and Christian González Chacón, a Secretariat lawyer, as its legal advisor. 1 3