26 where paramilitary groups are present […].”37 81. The Court finds that the danger created by the State aggravated the situation of vulnerability of human rights defenders38 who, like Jesús María Valle Jaramillo, denounced the violations committed by paramilitary groups and the armed forces. B) Measures of protection due to human rights defenders such as Jesús María Valle Jaramillo, who are in a situation of special vulnerability 82. The Court observes that, in its T-590/98 ruling on the application for legal protection based on a violation of constitutional rights, issued on October 20, 1998,39 the year in which Jesús María Valle Jaramillo was murdered, the Constitutional Court of Colombia stated that, at the time of the events of the instant case, human rights defenders in Colombia faced a grave risk of becoming victims of violence. According to the Constitutional Court, “the activities of Colombian human rights defenders [were] fraught with innumerable dangers,” making human rights defenders “a vulnerable sector of society,” and imposing upon the State the obligation to “prioritize their protection.”40 Specifically, the Constitutional Court declared that, at the time of Jesús María Valle Jaramillo’s death, there was an “unconstitutional state of affairs”41 in Colombia, owing to the State’s failure to protect human rights defenders. 83. It is worth noting that the Colombian Constitutional Court declared the existence of this “unconstitutional state of affairs” based on the reports of various international organizations regarding the vulnerability of human rights defenders in Colombia and the danger they faced.42 37 Case of the Pueblo Bello Massacre, supra note 30, para. 126 and Case of the Ituango Massacres, supra note 21, para. 134. 38 The Court shares the opinion of the Inter-American Commission in its Report on the Situation of Human Rights Defenders in the Americas, that “every person who in any way promotes or procures the realization of human rights and the fundamental liberties recognized at the national and international levels should be considered a human rights defender.” Thus, the Court finds that the concept of “human rights defender” includes officials belonging to entities such as the Ombudsman’s Office, Offices of Notaries Public, the Attorney General’s Office, and prosecutors specializing in human rights, among others. Cf. Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, Report on the Situation of Human Rights Defenders in the Americas, OEA/Ser.L/V/II.124, Doc. 5 rev. 1, March 7, 2006. 39 Constitutional Court of Colombia, Judgment T-590 of 1998 (file of attachments to the pleadings and motions brief, attachment I, folios 1377-1410). 40 Constitutional Court of Colombia, Judgment T-590 of 1998, supra note 39 (folios 1406 and 1407); testimony given during the public hearing held of February 6 and 7, 2008, at the seat of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights by the expert witness, Rainer Huhle, who stated that “the situation of the human rights defenders at the end of the 1990s was characterized by considerable, accumulated violence in many regards.” 41 Constitutional Court of Colombia, Judgment T-590 of 1998. It should be clarified that, according to the case law of the Colombian Constitutional Court, an “unconstitutional state of affairs” (estado de cosas inconstitutional) is declared when “(1) there is a repeated violation of the fundamental rights of many people – who can then, by filing an action for legal protection to defend their rights, overwhelm the courts, and (2) when the cause of that violation cannot be attributed solely to the defendant authority, but arises from structural factors.” Cf. Constitutional Court of Colombia, Judgment SU-250 of May 26, 1998. 42 Cf. Report of the United Nations Special Rapporteurs on Torture, and on Extrajudicial Executions on their visit to Colombia in October 1994. Referring to the danger for human rights defenders in Colombia, the Special Rapporteurs stated in their report that “[t]he threat is very real if one considers the alarming number of deaths among activists in recent years.” Additionally, the Special Representative of the Secretary General on human rights defenders stated that, “numerous urgent appeals have been sent to the Colombian Government, urging the authorities to ensure the protection of human rights activists.” Cf. UN. Commission on Human Rights, Report of the mission to Colombia of the Special Representative of the Secretary General on the question of human rights defenders E/CN.4/2002/106. Furthermore, the Chairperson of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights stated in 1997 that he “urge[d] the Government of Colombia to continue strengthening its support, through all State institutions, for all those who promote the defense of human rights.” The Court observes that the death of