16
64.
Likewise, the Court observed in paragraphs 171 and 172, that
[t]he recognition of their juridical personality is a way, albeit not the only one, to
ensure that the community, as a whole, will be able to fully enjoy and exercise their
right to property, in accordance with their communal property system, and the right to
equal access to judicial protection against violations of such right.
The Court considers that the right to have their juridical personality recognized by the
State is one of the special measures owed to indigenous and tribal groups in order to
ensure that they are able to use and enjoy their territory in accordance with their own
traditions. This is a natural consequence of the recognition of the right of members of
indigenous and tribal groups to enjoy certain rights in a communal manner.
65.
Thus, to fulfill its obligation under Operative Paragraph 6 of the Judgment, the
Tribunal declared in paragraph 168 that the State must “take into account the manner in
which members of indigenous and tribal peoples in general, and the Saramaka in particular,
enjoy and exercise […] the right to use and enjoy property collectively in accordance with
their ancestral traditions.”
The same considerations must be taken into account to
guarantee their right to equal access to judicial protection against violations of their right to
property.
VIII
OPERATIVE PARAGRAPHS
66.
Therefore,
THE INTER-AMERICAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS
pursuant to Article 67 of the American Convention on Human Rights and Articles 29(3) and
59 of the Rules of Procedure,
DECIDES:
unanimously,
1.
To declare admissible the State’s request for interpretation of the Judgment on
preliminary objections, merits, reparations, and costs issued on November 28, 2007 in the
Case of the Saramaka People, pursuant to paragraph 10 of the present Judgment.
2.
To determine the scope of the content of Operative Paragraphs 5 through 9 of the
Judgment on preliminary objections, merits, reparations, and costs issued on November 28,
2007 in the Case of the Saramaka People, pursuant to chapters IV, V, VI and VII of the
present Judgment.
3.
To request the Registrar to notify the present Judgment to the State of Suriname,
the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, and the representatives of the victims.
Written in English and Spanish, both texts being official versions, in Montevideo, Uruguay,
on August 12, 2008.