63
251. The State argued in its final pleadings that the request for an apology was inadmissible
because the applicants themselves had recognized their guilt for committing the illegal acts
that had been taken to trial. It also noted that it was out of order to grant such a request
because the Court, in its case law, has usually ordered such measures for cases of serious
violations, such as violation of the right to life, humane treatment and personal freedom. The
State cautioned, however, that none of these situations was under dispute in the instant case.
252. The State added in its final pleadings that if the names of the applicants were expunged
from public registries of criminal sentences, “such a measure […] would be tantamount to
holding the applicants innocent, that is, acquitting them of crimes for which they were
investigated, tried and convicted.” It clarified that the applicants’ disqualification under the
criminal conviction would be struck from the public record if they so requested under the
procedure of reinstatement provided by article 20 of the Argentine Criminal Code. Such
restitution had not been requested ever since the sentence of disqualification had been
ordered in 1995 by the National Chamber of Criminal Cassation. The State therefore asked
that this measure be denied.
253. The State took no position regarding the request to publish the judgment as a measure
of satisfaction, believing that the decision pertained to the Court
C.2 Considerations of the Court
254. The Court considers it pertinent, as it has in other cases, 221 to order the State to publish,
within a period of six months from notification of this Judgment, an official summary of this
judgment prepared by the Court, one time only, in the Official Gazette of Argentina.
255. Similarly, the Court holds that, there being insufficient evidence on which to vacate the
criminal processes lodged against the applicants (supra par. 248), it cannot justify ordering
measures of reparation for the effects these proceedings had on the applicants. It therefore
denies the measures being requested to strike the victims’ names from public criminal records
and the registries of disqualifications of the victims, as requested by the representatives.
256. This Court would note, however, that Mr. Marcial, who was acquitted by the second
appeals court as ordered by the National Chamber of Criminal Cassation on March 20, 1995,
had his rights restored in 1995 and received his retirement pension until the time of his death
in 2010.222
257. With respect to the measure of public recognition of responsibility, this Court deems
that it is not necessary to order the measure requested by the representatives, as the delivery
and publication of this judgment will, per se, be sufficient, appropriate measures.
D. Guarantees of non-recurrence
D.1 Arguments of the parties and of the Commission
221
Cfr. Case of Cantoral Benavides v. Peru. Reparations and Costs. Judgment of December 3, 2001. Series C No.
88, par. 79 and Case of Human Rights Defender et al. v. Guatemala, par. 261.
222
Cfr. Ruling No. 02/95 “C,” May 17, 1995, by the General Personnel Department of the Air Force, and a June,
25, 2013 communication from the Financial Assistance Bureau for Payment of Military Withdrawals and Pensions,
which reports to the Ministry of Defense (evidence file, folios 12058, 12059 and 14945).