ORDER OF THE INTER-AMERICAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS** OF JUNE 18, 2002 PROVISIONAL MEASURES REQUESTED BY THE INTER-AMERICAN COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS WITH RESPECT TO THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF BRAZIL CASE OF URSO BRANCO PRISON HAVING SEEN: 1. The brief filed by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (hereinafter “the Commission” or “the Inter-American Commission”) of June 6, 2002 in which it filed before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (hereinafter “the Court”) or “the Inter-American Court”), pursuant to Articles 63(2) of the American Convention on Human Rights (hereinafter “the Convention” or “the American Convention”), 25 of the Rules of Procedure of the Court, and 74 of the Rules of Procedure of the Commission, requesting provisional measures in favor of the inmates of the José Mario Alves Detention Center –known as the “Urso Branco Prison” – (hereinafter “the Urso Branco Prison” or “the prison”), located in the city of Porto Velho, State of Rondonia, Federal Republic of Brazil (hereinafter “Brazil” or “the State”), with the “aim [of] avoiding additional deaths of inmates” in the prison. The following are some of the facts stated by the Commission in its request for provisional measures: a) the situation of inmates in the Urso Branco Prison before January 1, 2002 was as follows: approximately 60 inmates were in special cells –known as “safety” cells- because they were imprisoned due to crimes considered immoral by the other inmates or because their lives or physical safety were threatened by other inmates; on the other hand, certain inmates deemed trustworthy by the authorities –known as “free cells”- enjoyed a degree of freedom of movement within the prison; however, a criminal sentence execution judge ordered that the latter be placed in cells; b) on January 1, 2002 the Urso Branco Prison authorities conducted a general relocation of inmates within the facilities, during which they effected the following changes: the inmates whom they believed endangered the life and safety of other inmates were transferred to cells located outside the general pavilions; the roughly 60 inmates who were isolated in “safety” cells were transferred to the general population cells, with five inmates per cell; and the inmates called “free cells” were also placed in the general pavilions. The procedure to determine which inmates were potential aggressors was not rigorous, so many of them remained in the general population; * Pursuant to Article 4(3) of the Rules of Procedure of the Court, and due to the fact that he is a Brazilian citizen, the President of the Court, Judge Antônio A. Cançado Trindade, handed over the Presidency to Judge Alirio Abreu Burelli, the Vice-President of the Court, to hear this request for provisional measures. * Judge Máximo Pacheco Gómez informed the court that, due to reasons of force majeure, he would not be able to attend the LV Regular Session of the Court, for which reason he did not participate in the deliberation and signing of the instant Order.