they did not respect territorial limits, which would explain why the list of victims provided by
the representatives stipulated that some individuals died in places nearby the places
indicated. In this regard, they explained that the places that the Court had expressly
excluded in its Judgment were: (1) adjoining, or very near the places that the Court itself
had recognized as scenes of the massacre, or (2) territorial districts – cantons – in which
the villages are located. In this regard, they affirmed that part of the village of Los Toriles
(which the Court had recognized was affected by the massacre) is located in the canton of
Tierra Colorada (expressly excluded) and adjoins the village of El Pinalito (expressly
excluded), which also forms part of the canton of Tierra Colorada. Furthermore, they
indicated that the lists presented “do not mention the village of La Guacamaya,” rather the
reference to “La Guacamaya” in the lists “refers to the canton of this name.” The
representatives explained that, in view of the impossibility of specifically determining the
exact place in the canton where the victims were executed, “Tierra Colorada” and
“Guacamaya” were indicated on the lists. They also explained that the village of El Pinalito
adjoins the village of Los Toriles and “was also affected by the massacre, although to a
lesser degree.” In addition, they clarified that Arambala “is not a department or a municipal
capital,” but rather it is “a municipality in the northern part of the department of Morazán”;
in other words, “part of the area affected by the massacre,” and that the canton of Tierra
Colorada and some of its villages are located within the municipality of Arambala.
Nevertheless, the reference to “Arambala” in the lists that were presented alluded “to the
town (urban area) of Arambala.” Furthermore, the representatives specified during the
proceedings before the Court that the lists they presented “are absolutely imperfect.”
Regarding the second argument, they noted that, during the proceedings before the Court,
the State had acknowledged its responsibility for the facts on several occasions and had
referred to places that were expressly excluded in the Judgment.
13.
Lastly, the representatives argued that, since the Court had ordered the State to
continue to implement fully the “Single List of Victims and Next of Kin of Victims of Grave
Human Rights Violations during the Massacre of El Mozote,” the territorial limitation
established in the Judgment “could lead to complications during the process of monitoring
this measure.” Consequently, they asked the Court to clarify the meaning, scope and
relationship between paragraph 56 of its judgment and the elaboration of the said List.
14.
The State maintained that, indeed, the events had a massive dimension and affected
populations and individuals who lived in different villages, cantons and municipalities,
especially in the municipal jurisdictions of Meanguera and Arambala, department of
Morazán. In addition, it confirmed that it was difficult to determine the borders of the
political-administrative division of the territories affected by the massacres, specifically as
regards being certain of the exact places where the human rights violations were
perpetrated during the events that were the subject-matter of the Judgment. It added that,
based on these considerations, the acknowledgements of international responsibility “tended
to locate the events […] in an extensive list of villages and cantons, without restricting them
to a closed or strictly delimited list.” It also noted that the operation started in the town of
Arambala and continued to El Mozote passing through the village of El Pinalito, in the canton
of Tierra Colorada. Furthermore, it clarified that the village of El Mozote itself is located in
the canton of La Guacamaya, in the municipality of Meanguera. In addition, it indicated that
it understood that the “Single List of Victims and Next of Kin of Victims of Grave Human
Rights Violations during the Massacre of El Mozote” would be the technical instrument and
the appropriate procedure for complying with the obligation established in the Judgment,
consisting in the “clear determination of other individuals who should also be considered
victims and, thus, beneficiaries of the reparations.”
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