-71name following their alleged disappearance, by giving them up in adoption to
other families. “This does not rule out that, having been seen for the last time
in the care of the Red Cross, the latter or some orphanage may have felt the
obligation to register the children under another name since their filiation had
not been established at that time, owing to the conduct of their parents.” The
State complied with the positive obligation and did not violate the negative
one, “because the children did not have the right to recognition as persons
before the law”;
d)
The State has carried out, insofar as possible, the investigations
required to discover the fate of the Serrano Cruz children. The physical
existence of the Serrano Cruz children is uncertain, hence their whereabouts
are unknown. “[D]uring the search, […] a reasonable doubt has arisen about
the identity of the Serrano Cruz children and the circumstances in which the
facts occurred.” “Added to the financial interest [of the mother of the
children, Erlinda and Ernestina], there is an altered baptismal certificate, [the
date of which] is incompatible [with] the date of […] the birth certificate,”
which “has been altered”;
e)
It has been shown that, should the reported facts be true, it was not
the State or its agents who directly or indirectly changed these children’s
names in order to hand them over to people other than their biological family;
and
f)
“All Salvadorans must work together to find the best solutions for
everyone in a climate of harmony, respect and objectivity, leading to the
truth about the whereabouts of the children; […] a humanitarian effort to
trace them must be made involving all sectors of Salvadoran society, through
permanent, organized initiatives that can truly achieve this objective, such as
a tracing commission.” “The State is firmly decided to continue the search
using the legal instruments that are in force and operating. Furthermore, it
reiterates [its] willingness to work within a tracing commission,” which is
“institutional, organized, duly structured and which, in conjunction with civil
society organizations, efficiently and effectively contributes to the effort to
trace children who were lost during the past conflict, with the humanitarian
goal of helping reunite the Salvadoran families that were separated owing to
the conflict, in the context and with the goal of knowing the truth.” This
tracing commission already has the support of the highest State authorities,
and is expected to start functioning shortly.” The State has invited Father
Juan Cortina to take part in this effort, but has not received a reply from him.
124.
With regard to Article 19 of the Convention the State indicated that:
a)
The alleged victim, Ernestina Serrano Cruz, would have been 19 years
and 8 months when El Salvador accepted the Court’s jurisdiction;
b)
In accordance with Article 3(2) of the Convention on the Rights of the
Child, “if the Salvadoran Army found both children abandoned […], the act of
picking them up and subsequently handing them over to a humanitarian
organization, is in keeping with the protection and care necessary for their
welfare.” The “conduct of the Armed Forces, should the facts have occurred
as they have been related before the national and the international courts, is