Commission reiterates that their situation of extreme gravity and urgency arose due to
the type of activities they were carrying out, in relation to different processes within
Colombia.”
44.
The Court reiterates that the maintenance of protection measures requires a
more thorough evaluation regarding the continuation of the situation that gave rise to
these. 12 Likewise, if a State requests the lifting of provisional measures, it must
present sufficient evidence and arguments to allow the Court to appreciate that the
risk or threat no longer satisfies the requirements of extreme gravity and urgency to
avoid irreparable damage. 13 Furthermore, the Court emphasizes that the burden upon
the beneficiaries and the Commission to argue and prove a situation of risk increases
as time passes and no new threats arise. 14 Bearing in mind the foregoing, the Court
will analyze the situation of each of the 12 persons named, based on the information
provided by the State and the representatives and the observations made by the
Commission, in order to determine the need to maintain the provisional measures.
3.1.
María Eugenia López Maya
45.
The representatives reported that on September 17, 2012 “she received two
phone calls on the land line of her home in Medellín (Antioquia) made from cell
phones, in which two men identified themselves as Commanders Cesar´ and `Ricardo´
of the paramilitary group known as `Los Urabeños´, [who] demanded that [she] buy
some medicine and deliver it to a rural area called `Chaparral.´” The representatives
added that “although [María Eugenia López] has ceased to be active in the
organization, she remains a member of ASFADDES and her activities, along with other
relatives, to combat forced disappearances in the Department of Antioquia, where she
lives, and in particular her search for justice and truth in the Massacre of Campamento
perpetrated [in 1990] by the paramilitary group `The Twelve Apostles´[...], are
sources of risk to her physical integrity.” They indicated that “the case of the Massacre
of Campamento potentially generates risks for María Eugenia López, since according to
a public complaint filed in Argentina in May 2010 by [a] retired Major of Colombia’s
National Police, [...] the head of that paramilitary group is allegedly Santiago Uribe
Vélez, brother of Álvaro Uribe Vélez, then a Senator and subsequently President of the
Republic.”
46.
The Commission did not submit observations regarding the situation of risk
facing Mrs. María Eugenia López Maya.
47.
As noted previously, the criterion for maintaining provisional measures is the
persistence of a situation of grave risk to the beneficiaries, based on specific evidence
(supra Considering para. 44) and having regard to the exceptional and temporary
nature of provisional measures. The fact that the brother of a former President is
12
Cf. Case of Carpio Nicolle. Provisional Measures regarding Guatemala. Order of the Court of July 6,
2009, Considering para. 24, and Matter Liliana Ortega et al. Provisional Measures regarding Venezuela.
Order of the Court of July 9, 2009, Considering para. 17.
13
Cf. Case of Carpio Nicolle. Provisional Measures regarding Guatemala. Order of the Court of July 6,
2009, Considering para. 24, and Matter Liliana Ortega et al. Provisional Measures regarding Venezuela.
Order of the Court of July 9, 2009, Considering para. 17.
14
Cf. Case of Carpio Nicolle. Provisional Measures regarding Guatemala. Order of the Court of July 6,
2009, Considering para. 24, and Matter Liliana Ortega et al. Provisional Measures regarding Venezuela.
Order of the Court of July 9, 2009, Considering para. 17.
13