with the latter jurisdiction, it should be mentioned that Brigadier General Uscátegui Ramírez was punished with suspension from duties. 25. The State maintains that it is in compliance with its international obligations inasmuch as internal investigations are proceeding designed to clarify the events that occurred at Mapiripán and to punish the culprits, as a result of which concrete progress has been made in the identification and indictment of some implicated parties, including three members of the National Army.17 The State refrained from advancing any other observations regarding the facts alleged by the petitioners on the merits of the matter. I. ANALYSIS OF COMPETENCE AND ADMISSIBILITY A. Competence of the Commission 26. The Commission has prima facie competence to take up the complaint lodged by the petitioners. The facts alleged in the petition occurred when the duty to respect and ensure the rights recognized in the Convention was in force for the Colombian State.18 27. The petition describes alleged violations of the American Convention committed against individuals who were under the jurisdiction of the State at the time of the events. With respect to the number and identity of the victims, the petition identifies Messrs. José Ronald Valencia and Sinaí Blanco as members of a group of approximately 49 civilians who died as a result of the events alleged in the instant case. In this regard, it should be mentioned that official documents contained in the record confirm that the AUC claimed responsibility for the murder of 49 people during the massacre perpetrated in Mapiripán between July 15 and 20, 1997, and that the judicial authorities have allegedly been unable to recover and, therefore, identify the corpses of the victims,19 which were allegedly mutilated and thrown into the River Guaviare. The State has not advanced any objections or clarifications in that respect. In view of these circumstances, the Commission finds that it is competent to examine the admissibility of the alleged violations of the American Convention committed in Mapiripán between July 15 and 20, 1997, in connection with José Ronald Valencia, Sinaí Blanco, and approximately 47 other as yet unidentified persons. B. Admissibility Requirements 1. Exhaustion of domestic remedies and deadline for lodging the petition 28. The State has requested that the Commission find the case inadmissible on the grounds that decisions are pending on domestic remedies. The petitioners, for their part, have alleged that the prosecution of some of the culprits by the military courts deprives the victims of access to an adequate and effective remedy. Accordingly, they have requested that the case be found admissible under the exceptions set forth in Article 46(2) of the American Convention. 29. Article 46(2) of the Convention provides that the requirement of prior exhaustion of domestic remedies does not apply when: a. the domestic legislation of the state concerned does not afford due process of law for the protection of the right or rights that have allegedly been violated; b. the party alleging violation of his rights has been denied access to the remedies under domestic law or has been prevented from exhausting them; or c. there has been unwarranted delay in rendering a final judgment under the aforementioned remedies. 17 Note EE. 1176 of the Office of the Director General of Special Affairs of June 14, 2000. 18 Colombia ratified the American Convention on Human Rights on July 31, 1973. 19 Accusation of the Human Rights Unit of the Prosecutor General’s Office of November 16, 1999, against Lieutenant Colonel Lino Hernandio Sánchez Prado for the crime of conspiracy and for failure to carry out duties, in respect of the crimes of aggravated homicide, aggravated abduction and terrorism, p.2. 6