6
IV
20.
The Court will now consider the preliminary objections submitted by the Government
(supra para. 6).
21.
The first objection is the "lack of jurisdiction of the Inter-American Court of Human
Rights," which the Government bases on the Nicaraguan acceptance of the Court's jurisdiction on
February 12, 1991 "[s]ubject to the reservation that this recognition of competence applies only
to cases arising solely out of events subsequent to, and out of acts which began to be committed
after, the date of deposit of this declaration with the Secretary General of the Organization of
American States [hereinafter the "OAS"]." This objection states that the events referred to in the
application occurred on October 28, 1990, a date that precedes the acceptance of jurisdiction,
thus, in accordance with the provisions of Articles 61(1) and 61(2) of the Convention, the Court
would not have jurisdiction. The Government accepted "for this case the jurisdiction of the InterAmerican Court of Human Rights only and exclusively under the precise terms of the application
submitted by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights in its subtitle 'Purpose of the
Application'," but maintained "the objection of lack of jurisdiction as to events having occurred
before February 12, 1991, other than those to which this specific acceptance statement refers."
22.
The Inter-American Commission requested that this preliminary objection be rejected since
the death of Jean Paul Genie occurred on October 28, 1990; however, the purpose of the application is
not limited to the violation of the right to life, which took place before the date of acceptance of the
mandatory jurisdiction of the Court by Nicaragua, but rather to the subsequent events which have
generated the international responsibility of the State for the violation of the rights to judicial protection
and guarantees, equal protection and the duty to adopt domestic legal measures in relationship to the
obligation to respect and ensure (Art. 1(1)) the full enjoyment of the rights recognized in Articles 2, 8,
24, and 25 of the American Convention on Human Rights.
The Commission feels that the unjustified delay in the administration of justice, the obstruction
of the judicial proceedings by agents who acted under the cover of a public function and the application
of norms incompatible with the object and purpose of the American Convention occurred after February
12, 1991: they originated on the day in which the judicial proceedings started, that is, July 23, 1991.
Consequently, the Commission feels that the Court is competent to examine the matter of lack of
diligence in the judicial investigation and the punishment of those responsible.
In this same respect, according to the Commission, Nicaragua's reservation to its acceptance of
the Court's jurisdiction does not affect the Court's capacity to hear the instant case.
23.
The Court understands that Nicaragua's acceptance of jurisdiction as formulated expressly
for this case is independent of the declaration of a general nature that it submitted on February
12, 1991, the date of deposit of its declaration before the Secretary General of the OAS. Under
the terms of Article 62, States may declare that they accept the jurisdiction of the Court "on all
matters . . . or for specific cases . . . concerning the interpretation and application of the
provisions of this Convention."
24.
Nicaragua has made both declarations subject to conditions, in one case excluding
occurrences prior to, or occurrences brought under consideration prior to February 12, 1991, and
in the other case with the limitation that jurisdiction applies "only and exclusively under the
precise terms" that appear in "the subtitle 'Purpose of the Application'," of the Commission (supra
para. 2).
25.
The Court does not feel it necessary to state its position at this time concerning the effect
of the existence of two acts of acceptance of jurisdiction. In principle, in the Commission's
"Purpose of the Application" there appear no demands relative to the violation of the victim's right
to life or to humane treatment, events which occurred prior to Nicaragua's acceptance of