96 (a) It rejects the claim to compensate indirect damage and loss of earnings, because it has not violated any of the rights embodied in the American Convention to the detriment of the YATAMA candidates, and it does not acknowledge the obligation to provide compensation; (b) Each candidate becomes involved in the electoral processes at his own risk. Individuals who aspire to participate in “public life in Nicaragua” are not obliged to abandon their employment. It is “probable that the YATAMA candidates voluntarily interrupted their employment”; and (c) With regard to non-pecuniary damage, it contested the claim that it had jeopardized the life plans of the candidates, and also “the claim concerning nonpecuniary damage caused to the YATAMA candidates, because it has been shown that they exercised the rights established in the laws in force,” and “when a political organization or a person accepts a pre-established legal framework, they may succeed or fail to obtain the desired results.” Considerations of the Court 242. Pecuniary damage generally presumes the loss of or detriment to income, the expenses incurred as a result of the facts and the consequences of a pecuniary nature that have a causal relationship with the facts sub judice.184 When applicable, the Court establishes an amount that seeks to compensate the patrimonial consequences of the violations. To decide the claims regarding pecuniary damage, the Court will take into account the body of evidence, its own case law and the arguments of the parties. 243. Non-pecuniary damage can include the suffering and hardship caused to the victims, the harm of objects of value that are very significant to the individual, and also changes, of a non-pecuniary nature, in the living conditions of the victims. Since it is not possible to allocate a precise monetary equivalent to non-pecuniary damage, it can only be compensated by the payment of a sum of money that the Court decides by the reasonable exercise of judicial discretion and based on the principle of equity, and by acts or projects with public recognition or repercussion, such as broadcasting a message that officially condemns the human rights violations in question and makes a commitment to efforts designed to ensure that it does not happen again. Such acts have the effect of acknowledging the dignity of the victims.185 The first aspect of reparation for non-pecuniary damage will be considered in this section and the second in section (C) of this chapter. 244. The candidates for the positions of mayors, deputy mayors and councilors proposed by YATAMA, and also this organization, incurred various expenses during the electoral campaign before the Supreme Electoral Council decided not to register these candidates. The members of the communities of the Atlantic Coast who selected the candidates in assemblies made material contributions to support their participation. In the instant case, the candidates proposed by YATAMA were excluded from participating in the election by decisions that violated the Convention. Consequently, they merit compensation for non-pecuniary damage for the expenses they incurred; to this end, 184 Cf. Case of Huilca Tecse, supra note 178, para. 93; Case of the Serrano Cruz Sisters, supra note 10, para. 150; and Case of the “Juvenile Reeducation Institute”, supra note 135, para. 283. 185 Cf. Case of Caesar, supra note 11, para. 125; Case of Huilca Tecse, supra note 178, para. 96; and Case of the Serrano Cruz Sisters, supra note 10, para. 156.