155
this measure to redress the next of kin of the victims, following the criteria for
comprehensive reparations;
d)
the amounts recognized in similar cases (19 Tradesmen) have led to a
shift from domestic to international jurisdiction, primarily moved by financial
reasons. This breaches the high principles of both International Human
Rights Law and domestic legislation, especially that of equality, since those
who obtain access to these instances under sponsorship of organizations that
specialize in human rights obtain costly settlements that, in the milieu in
which these payments will be received, may constitute enrichment and not
just compensation; and
e)
the fiscal effects of the new judgments on the public treasury may
affect programs and projects that should benefit the greatest possible number
of persons, because scarce existing resources will be used to pay
compensation for the damage suffered by a few. Likewise, in view of the
fiscal deficit, the State requested two years for compliance with the judgment
and for the amount payable to be stated in Colombian legal currency.
Considerations of the Court
282. Non-pecuniary harm can refer both to the suffering and the distress caused to
the direct victims and their next of kin, as well as to detriment to the individuals’
very significant values, and also to non-pecuniary changes in the conditions of the
victims’ existence. Since it is not possible to establish a precise monetary equivalent
for non-pecuniary harm, for purposes of comprehensive reparations for the victims,
it can only be compensated for in two ways. First, by means of payment of an
amount set by the Court by reasonably applying judicial discretion and in terms of
fairness. And secondly, by carrying out acts or works that are public in their scope
or repercussions, such as sending a message of official reproval of the human rights
violations involved and of commitment to efforts to avoid their repetition, with the
effect of remembrance of the victims, acknowledgment of their dignity and
consolation to their next of kin. The Court will address the first aspect of reparation
of non-pecuniary damages in this section, and the second one in the section on other
forms of reparation in this chapter.286
283. As the Court has pointed out in other cases,287 the non-pecuniary harm to the
victims is evident, as it is in accordance with human nature for any person subjected
to brutal acts in the context of the instant case to feel deep suffering, moral anguish,
terror, and insecurity, for which reason there is no need for evidence of this damage.
284. According to what was established, before being executed the victims were
deprived of their liberty and subjected to torture or to grave cruel, inhumane or
degrading treatment. Signs of torture and the conditions in which some of the next
of kin and witnesses found the bodies show not only the atrocious and barbarous
nature of the facts, but also that, in the least cruel of these situations, the victims
suffered grave psychological torture by witnessing the execution of other persons
286
See Case of Acosta Calderón, supra note 7, para. 158; Case of Caesar, supra note 274, para.
125, and Case of Huilca Tecse, supra note 274, para. 96.
287
See Case of Tibi, supra note 16, para. 244; Case of the “Juvenile Reeducation Institute”, supra
note 4, para. 300, and Case of the Gómez Paquiyauri Brothers, supra note 182, para. 217.
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