domestic law of the American States,” as stated in the Preamble of the American
Convention.” 115
98.
The complementary nature of the international jurisdiction means that the system of
protection established by the American Convention on Human Rights does not replace the
national jurisdiction, but rather complements it. 116 Thus, the State “is the main guarantor of
human rights and, therefore, if a violation of said rights occurs, the State must resolve the
matter at the domestic level and, if necessary, make reparations to the victim before having
to respond before international courts. 117
99.
Therefore, it is clear that in the inter-American system, there is a dynamic and
complementary control of the treaty-based obligations of the States to respect and guarantee
human rights, jointly between the domestic authorities (who have the primary obligation) and
the international bodies (in a complementary manner), so that their decision-making criteria
and mechanisms of protection, both national and international, can be established and
harmonized. 118 Thus, the jurisprudence of the Court law includes cases in which the decisions
of domestic courts are used to support and conceptualize the violation of the Convention in
the specific case: 119 In other cases, it has been recognized that, in accordance with
international obligations, the domestic organs, agencies or courts have adopted adequate
measures to remedy the situation that gave rise to the case; 120 have already resolved the
alleged violation; 121 have ordered reasonable reparations; 122 or have exercised an adequate
control of conventionality. 123 In this sense, the Court has pointed out that State responsibility
under the Convention can only be required at the international level after the State has had
an opportunity to acknowledge, if applicable, the violation of a right and to repair by its own
means the damage caused. 124 Consequently, the Court has established that States are not
internationally responsible when they have recognized the commission of an internationally
Cf. Case of Las Palmeras v. Colombia. Merits. Judgment of December 6, 2001. Series C No. 90, para. 33,
and Case of Andrade Salmón v. Bolivia. Merits, reparations and costs. Judgment of December 1, 2016. Series C
No. 330, para. 92.
116
Cf. Case of Tarazona Arrieta et al. v. Peru. Preliminary objection, merits, reparations and costs. Judgment
of 15 October 2014. Series C No. 286, para. 137, and Case of Duque v. Colombia, supra, para. 128.
117
Cf. Case of Acevedo Jaramillo et al. v. Peru. Interpretation of Judgment on preliminary objections, merits,
reparations and costs, Para. 66, and Case of Duque v. Colombia, supra, para. 128.
118
Cf. Case of the Santo Domingo Massacre v. Colombia. Preliminary objections, merits and reparations.
Judgment of November 30, 2012. Series C No. 259, Para. 143, and Case of Andrade Salmón v. Bolivia, supra,
para. 93.
119
Cf. Case of the Santo Domingo Massacre v. Colombia, supra, paras. 143, 196, 200, 203, 206, 209, 220,
221, 225. See also, Case of the Mapiripán Massacre v. Colombia. Merits, reparations and costs. Judgment of
September 15, 2005. Series C No. 134, para. 167 and Case of Gelman v. Uruguay. Merits and reparations.
Judgment of February 24, 2011. Series C No. 221, para. 124.
120
Cf. Case of García Ibarra et al. v. Ecuador, para. 103.
121
Cf. Case of García Ibarra et al. v. Ecuador, supra, para. 103. Also, see Case of Tarazona Arrieta et al. v.
Peru, supra, para. 140.
115
Cf. Case of García Ibarra et al. v. Ecuador. Preliminary objections, merits, reparations and costs.
Judgment of November 17, 2015. Series C No. 306, para. 103. Also see, Case of the Santo Domingo Massacre v.
Colombia, supra, paras. 334 to 336, Case of Tarazona Arrieta et al. v. Peru, supra, paras. 193 and 194.
122
Cf. Case of Gelman v. Uruguay, supra, para. 239, and Case of Tenorio Roca et al. v. Peru. Preliminary
objections, merits, reparations and costs. Judgment of June 22, 2016. Series C No. 314, paras. 230 and ff.
124
Cf. Case of the Santo Domingo Massacre v. Colombia, supra, para. 143, Case of Duque v. Colombia,
supra, paras. 126 to 128, and Case of Andrade Salmón v. Bolivia, supra, para. 93.
123
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