INTER - AMERICAN COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS
COMISION INTERAMERICANA DE DERECHOS HUMANOS
COMISSÃO INTERAMERICANA DE DIREITOS HUMANOS
COMMISSION INTERAMÉRICAINE DES DROITS DE L'HOMME
ORGANIZACIÓN DE LOS ESTADOS AMERICANOS
WASHINGTON, D.C. 2 0 0 0 6 EEUU
February 21, 2012
Ref.:
Case No. 12.474
Familia Pacheco Tineo
Bolivia
Mr. Secretary:
I am pleased to address you on behalf of the Inter-American Commission on
Human Rights in order to file Case No. 12.474 against the Plurinational State of Bolivia
(hereinafter “the State,” “the Bolivian State” or “Bolivia”), before the jurisdiction of the
Honorable Inter-American Court of Human Rights., relating to the return of the Pacheco
Tineo family to the State of Peru on February 24, 2001, as a result of a rejection of their
application for recognition of refugee status in Bolivia. The Pacheco Tineo family—made
up of Rumaldo Juan Pacheco Osco; his wife, Fredesvinda Tineo Godos; and their
children, Juana Guadalupe, Frida Edith, and Juan Ricardo Pacheco Tineo—entered
Bolivia on February 19, 2001. The immigration authorities became aware of their
irregular status and ordered measures with a view to their expulsion to Peru. This led
Rumaldo Juan Pacheco Osco to apply to the State of Bolivia for recognition of refugee
status for himself and his family. This application was rejected in a matter of hours, in a
summary fashion and in violation of several due process guarantees. As a result, the
Pacheo Tineo family was expelled to Peru on February 24, 2001. In its Report on the
Merits, the Commission concluded that the Bolivian State had violated the right to mental
and moral integrity, for the violation of the right to judicial protection, the right to a fair
trial, the right to seek asylum and the principle of non-refoulement. Finally, the State of
Bolivia is responsible for the violation of the obligation to provide special protection to
children.
Pablo Saavedra Alessandri, Secretario
Inter-American Court of Human Rights
Apartado 6906-1000
San José, Costa Rica
Attachments
The State of Bolivia ratified the American Convention on Human Rights (hereinafter “the
American Convention” or “the ACHR”) on July 19, 1979 and accepted the contentious
jurisdiction of the Court on January 21, 1981.