of access to justice.126 The judge in charge of hearing a case must have jurisdiction, as well
as be independent and impartial.127 In this sense, the victims of human rights violations and
their families have the right to have such violations heard and resolved by a court having
jurisdiction, in accordance with due process and access to justice,128 which, ultimately, was
not guaranteed to the alleged victims in the instant case.
152. The Court emphasizes that the State recognized that both the investigation and the
process brought before the military criminal jurisdiction were not in accordance with interAmerican standards, given that said court lacked subject matter jurisdiction to hear facts
related to human rights violations. Thus, the Court finds that the ordinary judge's recusal from
hearing the case, the period during which the case was heard by the military jurisdiction, and
the dismissal decision issued by the latter, which was then confirmed and, to date, has
determined that the facts have not been clarified and that the pertinent responsibilities have
not been deduced, constituted violations of the guarantee of the natural judge and, with it,
the rights to due process and access to justice of the alleged victims. 129 In the Court's opinion,
the foregoing makes no further examination necessary as to compliance with other judicial
guarantees in the framework of the criminal proceeding processed before the military justice
system.
153. Ecuador also indicated that, based on the final report of the Truth Commission, which
“documented” the alleged victims and “determined” the participation of the alleged
perpetrators, the necessary measures have been taken to investigate the facts. In this regard,
the State Attorney General's Office, in accordance with the legal reform on issues of military
justice, has carried out the necessary steps to clarify what happened.
154. Given the argument made, the Court recalls that States can establish truth commissions,
which contribute to the construction and preservation of historical memory, the clarification of
facts, and the determination of institutional, social, and political responsibilities in certain
historical periods of a society. 130 However, this neither completes nor replaces the obligation
of the State to determine the truth through judicial proceedings. 131
155. Meanwhile, Ecuador provided documentary evidence proving that, based on the content
of the final report of the Truth Commission and since 2011, the Office of the Prosecutor General
initiated the investigation aimed at clarifying what had happened. Among other proceedings,
in November 2018, it performed exhumation and expert examination of "[i]ntraorganic and
[c]omprehensive [b]alistics" on the body of Luis Eduardo Casierra Quiñonez; different
information has been compiled, statements have been received from different people, and
other types of investigative actions have been ordered, including various expert opinions. 132
Cf. Case of Castillo Petruzzi et al. v. Peru. Merits, Reparations and Costs. Judgment of May 30, 1999. Series C
No. 52, para. 128, and Case of Alvarado Espinoza et al. v. Mexico Merits, Reparations and Costs. Judgment of
November 28, 2018. Series C No. 370, para. 232.
127
Cf. Case of Castillo Petruzzi et al. v. Peru, supra, para. 130, and Case of Tenorio Roca et al. v. Peru Preliminary
Objections, Merits, Reparations, and Costs. Judgment of June 22, 2016. Series C No. 314, para. 195.
128
Cf. Case of Radilla-Pacheco v. Mexico. Preliminary Objections, Merits, Reparations, and Costs. Judgment of
November 23, 2009. Series C No. 209, para. 275, and Case of Tenorio Roca et al. v. Peru, supra, para. 195.
129
Cf. Mutatis mutandis, Case of Tenorio Roca et al. v. Peru, supra, para. 201.
130
Cf. Case of Zambrano Vélez et al. v. Ecuador, supra, para. 128, and Case of Grijalva Bueno v. Ecuador, supra,
para. 129.
131
Cf. Case of Zambrano Vélez et al. v. Ecuador, supra, para. 128, and Case of Garzón Guzmán et al. v. Ecuador,
supra, para. 87.
132
Cf. Updated report on progress in the investigation of the “Case of the Casierra Brothers,” letter No. FGEGCVDH-2019-002357-0 of May 6, 2019, signed by the head of the Directorate of the Truth and Human Rights
Commission of the Office of the Office of the Prosecutor General (evidence file, volume IV, annex 67 to the answering
brief, folios 5183 to 5203); memorandum No. FGE-CGAJP-DDHPC-2019-00410-M of December 4, 2019, “Casierra
Case Information”, signed by the Prosecutor from the Human Rights and Citizen Participation Directorate of the Office
of the Prosecutor General (evidence file, volume IV, annex 68 to the answering brief, folios 5205 and 5206), and
memorandum No. FGE-CGAJP-DDHPC-2021-00400-M, of March 25, 2021, “Supplement the report related to the Case
126
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