8
ii) On January 19, 2010, the Protection Program of the Ministry of
Justice and the Interior approved “by emergency procedure” the
precautionary measures requested by the petitioners on December
With respect to the
22, 2009 (supra Having Seen 2(j)).2
implementation of these measures, the State indicated that during a
February 1, 2010 meeting held with the petitioners, the Ministry of
Justice and the Interior asked the members of the ICJP “to claim
their communication devices in this office’s facilities”; as to the
request for vehicles, “[one was] awaiting the evaluation of resumes
[on behalf of the VISE Ltda. company] of prospective security
escorts proposed by the beneficiaries,” in order to verify that their
qualities were appropriate for the security rigors in place, and to
guarantee the suitability of the protective measures. The State also
made mention that on that same date the Human Rights Group of
the National Police said, among other things, that it had
communicated with the Bogotá Metropolitan Police and the police
department of Urabá with the aim of intensifying security measures
for members of the ICJP, that the police of Teusaquillo has
augmented patrols around the ICJP headquarters, and that the
establishment of strategic security alliances within police
jurisdictions has been requested “with the goal of safeguarding the
fundamental rights and guaranteeing the free exercise of the
activities” of the ICJP.
iii) At the meeting held on February 1, 2010, the beneficiaries
requested that the Bajo Atrato protection scheme “be
complemented by way of police escorts in front of and behind the
vehicle at a distance of 10 meters, only in situations where timely
notice is given and punctuality respected.” In this regard, the police
representative had discussed with the beneficiaries the availability
of such measures and suggested a direct contact with the police in
the area. Within the implementation framework “of this security
measure, meetings [were] carried out to explain the route and to
get feedback from police as to security conditions in the area”;
e)
In concert with other entities, the State has adopted “material security
and protection measures geared at guaranteeing the lives and right to
humane treatment of the members” of the ICJP as well as “the exercise of
their work in defense of human rights,” and
f)
“[T]he risk factors cited by the [Inter-American Commission] lack
foundation to show that State actions are the current source of such risks,
which is unacceptable [...].”
2
Specifically, the State referred to: “[t]en […] AVANTEL communication devices”; “[t]wenty-five
[…] cellular telephones for the ICJP members”; “[o]ne […] armored vehicle, white in color, as
reinforcement for the protection schemes that they currently have in the city of Bogotá”; “[a] […] late
model vehicle, white in color, with escorts in order to get around in the areas of Curvaradó, Apartadó, and
Turbo.” As for the maintenance and installation of cameras, the State said that “the Ministry of Justice
and the Interior informed us that this will be performed by competent personnel in the second week of
February 2010.”