119
c)
the violation of the right to health is at three levels: first, because the
State failed to follow even the minimum standards for hygiene, diet and
primary health care that would have helped prevent sickness and disease and
keep all the alleged victims in the instant case in a minimum state of health,
in keeping with their dignity as human beings; second, because once the
inmates became sick, they were not given adequate medical and dental
treatment; finally, no special treatment was given to adolescents suffering
from mental disorders or addictions;
d)
as for the right to education, the State did not provide formal,
continuous education programs. There were no trained professionals and
budgetary appropriations for the vocational training and literacy classes.
What classes were offered were not part of a comprehensive educational
program geared to re-educating and rehabilitating the juveniles, since the
Center was not properly equipped for a re-education policy to succeed.
Juveniles deprived of their liberty are not to be deprived of their right to
education and dignity; and
e)
concerning the right to rest, to leisure time, to recreation and to a
cultural and artistic life, the State failed to offer any program of that kind on a
continuing basis and did not foster contacts with family and community. The
State did not ensure the inmates’ right to rest and recreation and the right to
engage in games and recreational activities suited to their age bracket.
Instead, the juveniles remained locked in small cells for the bulk of the day,
and were allowed out for only two hours a day.
Pleadings of the State
254.
The State argued as follows with regard to Article 26 of the Convention:
a)
economic, social and cultural rights are not germane to this case, as
the Commission pointed out; and
b)
when this case was heard in the Commission, the representatives
never asserted any Article 26 claims, so that the State must reject them as
irrelevant and immaterial, and would respectfully remind the Court of the
arguments set forth in its brief of preliminary objections.
Considerations of the Court
255. Within the present judgment, the Court analyzed the issues pertaining to a
life with dignity, health, education and recreation in its considerations with regard to
Articles 4 and 5 of the Convention, in relation to Articles 19 and 1(1) thereof and
Article 13 of the Protocol of San Salvador. This Court therefore deems that to
address the matter of Article 26 of the Convention would be redundant.
XIII
REPARATIONS
APPLICATION OF ARTICLE 63(1) OF THE AMERICAN CONVENTION
Obligation to make reparations
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