3
thus making it unnecessary for the inter-American jurisdiction, whose main purpose is
precisely this re-establishment, to intervene.6
In other words, the rule of the prior exhaustion of domestic remedies operates in those
situations in which the object and purpose of the Convention has not been achieved
because the State concerned has failed to comply with its undertakings in this regard7
and, therefore, the intervention of the international jurisdictional organ is necessary so
that, if appropriate, it can order the State to comply with the international obligations it
has breached, to guarantee that it will not violate them again, and to make reparation
for the consequences of such violations.8
This is why the Court indicates that “[t]he rule of prior exhaustion of domestic remedies
was conceived in the interests of the State, because it seeks to exempt it from
responding before an international organ for acts attributed to it, before it has had the
opportunity to remedy them by its own means.”9
However, this assertion must be nuanced or complemented because, on the one hand,
this rule is not included among the rights guaranteed by the Convention,10 but rather
among the norms of the Convention concerning the mechanisms for the protection of
those rights11 – in other words, among the provisions of a procedural nature – and, on
the other hand, the rule was not solely and exclusively, or even mainly, conceived in
order to serve the interests of the State, but fundamentally in order to achieve, as a
practical effect, the most prompt and effective re-establishment of respect for human
rights by the State. Consequently, this rule has also been established, perhaps primarily,
for the benefit and use of the victim of a human rights violation. This is even more
evident if the provisions of Article 25(1) of the Convention, transcribed above, are
recalled concerning the right of everyone to judicial protection.
In other words, since the rule of prior exhaustion of domestic remedies is of a procedural
nature and, especially, since it is not among the rights recognized by the Convention, it
cannot be understood, per se or prima facie, as a restriction to the enjoyment and
exercise of those rights or, in any case, that this is not established in the Convention. 12
In other words, the pro homini principle will not always be applicable with regard to this
rule, especially the aspects of it that are regulated by the organs of protection
those rights and freedoms, without any discrimination for reasons of race, color, sex, language, religion, political
or other opinion, national or social origin, economic status, birth, or any other social condition.”
6
Art. 63(1) of the Convention: “If the Court finds that there has been a violation of a right or freedom
protected by this Convention, the Court shall rule that the injured party be ensured the enjoyment of his right or
freedom that was violated. It shall also rule, if appropriate, that the consequences of the measure or situation that
constituted the breach of such right or freedom be remedied and that fair compensation be paid to the injured
party.”
7
Art. 33 of the Convention: “The following organs shall have competence with respect to matters relating
to the fulfillment of the commitments made by the States Parties to this Convention: (a) the Inter-American
Commission on Human Rights, referred to as "the Commission;" and (b) the Inter-American Court of Human
Rights, referred to as "the Court."
8
Art. 63(1) of the Convention, transcribed above.
9
Para. 15.
10
Part I of the Convention, “State Obligations and Rights Protected.”
11
Part II of the Convention, “Means of Protection.”
12
Art. 29 of the Convention: “Restrictions regarding Interpretation. No provision of this Convention shall
be interpreted as: (a) permitting any State Party, group, or person to suppress the enjoyment or exercise of the
rights and freedoms recognized in this Convention or to restrict them to a greater extent than is provided for
herein; (b) restricting the enjoyment or exercise of any right or freedom recognized by virtue of the laws of any
State Party or by virtue of another convention to which one of the said states is a party; (c) precluding other rights
or guarantees that are inherent in the human personality or derived from representative democracy as a form of
government; or (d) excluding or limiting the effect that the American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man
and other international acts of the same nature may have.”