persons with disabilities on an equal basis with others, including through the provision of
procedural and age-appropriate accommodations, in order to facilitate their effective role as
direct and indirect participants, including as witnesses, in all legal proceedings, including at
investigative and other preliminary stages, and ii) States Parties shall promote appropriate
training for those working in the field of administration of justice, including police and prison
staff.
138.
Likewise, the Convention on the Rights of the Child requires States to adopt special
measures of protection with regard to health286 and social security287, which should be even
greater for children with disabilities.288 Regarding children with disabilities, the Committee
for the Rights of the Child has stated that:
Attainment of the highest possible standard of health as well as access and affordability of quality
healthcare is an inherent right for all children. Children with disabilities are often left out because of
several challenges, including discrimination, inaccessibility due to the lack of information and/or
financial resources, transportation, geographic distribution and physical access to health care
facilities.289.
139. Having established these general standards, the Court considers that since Sebastián
was a child and is currently an adult with disabilities, it is necessary to analyze the dispute
between the parties based on an interpretation of the rights of the American Convention
and their related obligations, in light of the special protection measures stemming from
those standards. This framework provides mechanisms to guarantee and adequately protect
the rights of persons with disabilities, in conditions of equality, taking into account their
specific needs.
C)
Reasonable term
Arguments of the parties and of the Inter-American Commission
140. The Commission argued that the State is responsible for the violation of Articles 8(1)
and 25(1) of the American Convention, in relation to Article 1(1) thereof, to the detriment of
Sebastián and Danilo Furlan, due to “the unwarranted delay in the civil proceedings for
damages.”
141. The representatives alleged that the State violated “Articles 8(1) and 25 in relation
to Articles 1(1), 2 and 19 [of the American Convention] and the corresponding articles of
the Convention on the Rights of the Child (Arts. 2, 3, 12” given that it did not take the
measures necessary to offer Sebastián Furlan and his family “a prompt, timely, and
effective remedy,” thereby violating the guarantees of due process and the right to
adequate legal protection.” They added that this situation was aggravated by the failure to
comply with “the duty to provide Sebastián Furlan with the special measures of protection
that he required as a child with a disability.”
142. The State asked the Court to declare “that it has not violated Articles 8 and 25 of the
Convention, inasmuch as “the delays that [...] occurred in the framework of the civil
proceedings [for damages], were not attributable to the State of Argentina.”
286
Cf. Article 24 Convention on the Rights of the Child.
287
Cf. Article 26 Convention on the Rights of the Child.
288
Cf. Article 23 Convention on the Rights of the Child.
289
Committee on the Rights of the Child, General Comment No. 9, para. 51.
48
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