DISSENTING OPINION OF
JUDGE A. A. CANÇADO TRINDADE
1.
I regret not to be able to concur with the decision taken by the majority of
the Court in operative paragraph n. 3, and the criterion that it adopted in
paragraphs 55-57, of the present Judgment on reparations in the Caballero Delgado
and Santana case, to the effect of refraining the Court from seeking a review of the
pertinent provisions of Colombian domestic legislation regarding the remedy of
habeas corpus with a view to determining its compatibility or otherwise with the
American Convention on Human Rights, and from ordering the legislative tipification
of the crime of forced disappearance of persons, in the framework of the
determination of the distinct measures of reparation in the circumstances of the cas
d'espèce. May I proceed to an explanation of the juridical foundations of my
dissenting position on the matter.
2.
In order to reach the decision not to order the non-pecuniary reparations at
issue, the Court invoked its previous decision in the present case (Judgment of 08
December 1995, on the merits, paragraph 62) to the effect that Colombia did not
violate Article 2 of the Convention (obligation to adopt measures of domestic law),
nor Articles 8 and 25 (judicial guarantees and protection). While it is by no means
my intention to reopen discussion of that decision - which would not be proper at
the present phase of reparations, - it should not pass unnoticed that, at the same
time as the Court arrived at that decision, it also decided that "as Colombia had not
redressed the consequences of the violations carried out by its agents, it failed to
comply with the obligations that Article 1(1) of the Convention ... imposes on it"
(ibid., paragraph 59). This is a point which does warrant consideration at the
present phase of reparations, since the Court itself has expressly established the
link between the general duty of Article 1(1) of the Convention and the reparations,
while Article 63(1) of the Convention adds to the indemnizations other measures of
reparation resulting from the duty to secure the enjoyment of the violated rights.
3.
In fact, the general duty to respect and to ensure respect of the protected
rights (enshrined in Article 1(1) of the Convention) has a broad scope, as this Court
has already indicated in previous cases.1 The present Caballero Delgado and
Santana case adds a new element for analysis, inasmuch as we are now faced with
a situation, unlike that in previous cases, in which the Court has determined that
there was violation of Article 1(1) (in conjunction with Articles 7 and 4) but not of
Article 2 (in conjunction with Articles 8 and 25) of the Convention. Compliance with
the obligation to ensure respect for the protected rights depends not only on the
existing constitutional or legislative provisions - which often are not sufficient per se
- but requires furthermore other measures from the States Parties to the effect of
educating and empowering individuals under their jurisdiction to make full use of all
the protected rights. They include the adoption of legislative and administrative
measures designed to remove obstacles, fill in lacunae, and enhance the conditions
for the exercise of the protected rights.
4.
In the examination of a concrete case, even if a decision is reached that
Article 2 of the Convention has not been violated, as the Court has done in the
present Caballero Delgado and Santana case, it cannot be inferred therefrom that
the States Parties would not be obliged to take the measures necessary
to ensure respect for the protected rights. This general and immediate, and
1
Inter-American Court of Human Rights, Velásquez Rodríguez Case, Judgment of 29
July 1988, Series C, n. 4, paragraphs 163-171; Godínez Cruz Case, Judgment of 20 January
1989, Series C, n. 5, paragraphs 172-180.