39.
In the instant case, the petition was received on March 30,
1999; the facts that are the subject matter of the claim occurred on
August 11, 1996; and their effects, in terms of the alleged failure of the
administration of justice, extend to the present day. The Commission
observes that on February 11, 1999, the Contentious-Administrative
Court Tribunal of Arauca declared the State responsible for the death of
Gustavo Giraldo Villamizar; and on November 19, 1999, the military
justice system declared the discontinuance of criminal proceedings into
the death of Gustavo Giraldo Villamizar, and on September 27, 2000,
the Office of the Delegate Procurator for Human Rights (la Procuraduría
Delegada para la Defensa de los Derechos Humanos) ordered the
discontinuance of the disciplinary proceeding against two members of
the National Army allegedly involved in the facts that are the subject
matter of the claim. Therefore, in view of the context and the
characteristics of the instant case, the Commission considers that the
petition was submitted within a reasonable time and that the
admissibility requirement referring to deadline for lodging a petition
should be considered to have been satisfied.
3.
judicata
Duplication of procedures and international res
40.
It does not appear from the record that the subject matter
of the petition is pending before any other procedure for international
settlement, nor that it reproduces a petition already examined by this or
any other international organization. Therefore, the requirements
established at Articles 46(1)(c) and 47(d) of the Convention should be
deemed to have been met.
4.
Characterization of the facts alleged
41.
In view of the elements of fact and law presented by the
parties and the nature of the matter put before it, the IACHR considers
that the petitioners’ allegations on the scope of state responsibility for
the death of Gustavo Villamizar and its failure to judicially clarify the
facts tend to establish possible violations of the rights to life, judicial
guarantees, and judicial protection protected at Articles 4(1), 8(1), and
25, all in conjunction with Article 1(1) of the American Convention. In
addition, given the elements of fact of the instant petition, and in
application of the principle of iura novit curia, the Commission observes
that in the merits stage it should analyze the possible responsibility of
the State, in light of the standards of Article 11 of the American
Convention, for reporting that Gustavo Giraldo Villamizar belonged to
15