11
Court’s judgment. Furthermore, the Court underscores that, in its request for
interpretation, the State itself affirmed that “in the eleventh operative paragraph, the
Court ordered [the State] to conduct the investigations and, as appropriate, to file
criminal proceedings against those who are found responsible so that the competent
judicial authority may decide whether criminal responsibility exists and, if
appropriate, apply the legal punishments and consequences.” Thus, the Court
ordered that the competent authorities of the domestic system of justice determine
the corresponding criminal responsibilities. Consequently, there is no lack of clarity in
the Court’s decision in the operative paragraph in question, and the State has
revealed this in its arguments, so that the request submitted by Mexico in this regard
is inadmissible.
31.
Moreover, the Court observes that the State is attempting to make the Court
rule on factual and legal issues upon which it has already adopted a decision (supra
para. 12). Specifically, it indicated that, since the preliminary inquiry into the facts is
underway in the domestic jurisdiction, investigations into the alleged offenses
committed continue and they will determine the corresponding responsibilities, as
well as whether State agents were involved. The foregoing reveals that Mexico
questioned the Court’s competence to establish the proven facts in this case and the
consequent declaration of international responsibility. This Court’s case law has
established repeatedly that a request for interpretation of judgment shall not be used
as a means to contest the decision of which an interpretation is sought (supra para.
11). Consequently, the interpretation requested on this aspect is also inadmissible.
b) Material competence of the Court
32.
Notwithstanding the above, and with regard to the Court’s alleged lack of
competence to determine individual criminal responsibilities, the Court advises the
State that its consistent case law is expressly affirmed in the judgment. From
reading the judgment, it is clear that the Court has not exceeded its competence, nor
has it determined individual criminal responsibilities. In its request for interpretation
brief, Mexico equates the determination of the State’s international responsibility for
the acts of its agents with the determination of individual criminal responsibilities.
The latter would require, among other matters, the individualization and
identification of the alleged perpetrators and their respective criminal punishments,
which cannot be deduced from the judgment. In fact, the Court did not evaluate the
conduct of possible authors of the facts under domestic criminal law, nor did it
include dogmatic reasoning or arguments on the interpretation of criminal law or rule
on the punishment or what this should consist of. To the contrary, in accordance with
the basic principles of international law, in order to establish whether the State’s
international responsibility is entailed in a case submitted to its consideration, the
Inter-American Court must determine whether its agents have committed an act or
omission. Thus, the decision as to whether the State has incurred international
responsibility entails the examination of the acts of the agents of the different State
organs and bodies. Consequently, in any case in which the Court has found the
international responsibility of the State concerned, it has found that this arose from
an act or omission of one or more State agents.
c) Presumption of innocence
33.
Regarding the Court’s alleged violation of the principle of presumption of
innocence, this Court has indicated that this principle is one of the pillars of judicial