2
I
INTRODUCTION OF THE CASE AND PURPOSE OF THE DISPUTE
1.
On August 2, 2009, in accordance with the provisions of Articles 51 and 61 of the
American Convention, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (hereinafter
“the Inter-American Commission” or “the Commission”) submitted to the Court an
application against the United Mexican States (hereinafter “the State” or “Mexico”),
which originated from the petition filed on November 10, 2003, by Valentina Rosendo
Cantú (hereinafter “Rosendo Cantú” or “the alleged victim”), the Organización Indígena
de Pueblos Mixtecos y Tlapanecos A.C. [the Indigenous Organization of the Mixtec and
Tlapanec People] and the Centro de Derechos Humanos de la Montaña ‘Tlachinollan’ A.C.
[Tlachinollan Human Rights Center of the Mountain], (hereinafter, “Tlachinollan”), and
the Centro de Derechos Humanos Miguel Agustin Pro Juárez A.C. [The Miguel Agustin
Human Rights Center]. On October 21, 2006, the Inter-American Commission issued
Admissibility Report No. 93/062 and, on March 27, 2009, it approved Report on Merits
No. 36/09,3 pursuant to Article 50 of the Convention, in which it made a series of
recommendations to the State. This report was notified to Mexico on April 2, 2009 and
the State was granted two months to provide information on any actions taken to
implement the recommendations. On May 7, 2009 the State requested a one-month
extension of the time limit to comply with the recommendations indicated. The InterAmerican Commission ordered the requested extension for June 17, 2009, and
requested the State to report on the measures adopted to satisfy the recommendations.
After the period lapsed “without the State having presented information regarding the
implementation of the recommendations,” on July 31, 2009, the Commission decided to
submit the case to the Court. The Commission appointed Florentín Meléndez,
Commissioner at the time, and Executive Secretary, Santiago A. Canton, as delegates,
and the Deputy Executive Secretary, Elizabeth Abi-Mershed, and the lawyers, Isabel
Madariaga, Rosa Celorio, Fiorella Melzi, and Lilly Ching, specialists of the Secretariat, as
legal advisors.
2.
According to the Inter-American Commission, the application refers to the alleged
international responsibility of the State for the “rape and torture” of Mrs. Rosendo Cantu
that took place on February 16, 2002; the “lack of due diligence in the investigation and
punishment of the perpetrators” of these facts; “the consequence caused by the facts in
the case to the daughter of the [alleged] victim”; “the failure to make adequate
reparation to the [alleged] victim and her next of kin”; the “use of the military justice
system to investigate and prosecute human rights violations,” and the difficulties
encountered by indigenous people, particularly indigenous women, to obtain access to
justice and health care.”
3.
Based on the above, the Inter-American Commission asked the Court to declare
the State responsible for the violation of Articles 5 (Right to Personal Integrity), 8 (Right
to a Fair Trial), 25 (Right to Judicial Protection), 11 (Right to Privacy [Honor and
2
In the Admissibility Report No. 93/06, the Commission declared the petition admissible with regard to
the alleged violation of Articles 5(1), 7, 8(1), 11, 19, and 25, in relation to Article 1(1), all of the American
Convention; as well as to Article 7 of the Inter-American Convention on the Prevention, Punishment, and
Eradication of Violence against Women, and Articles 1, 6, and 8 of the Inter-American Convention to Prevent
and Punish Torture (file of attachments to the application, tome I, appendix 2, folio 4053).
3
In Report on Merits No. 36/09, the Commission concluded that the State was “responsible for violating
the rights to judicial guarantees and to judicial protection embodied in Articles 8(1) and 25 of the American
Convention in relation to Article 1(1) thereof, and Articles 5(1), 11, and 19 of the American Convention, in
relation to Article 1(1) of this international instrument. Furthermore, it conclude[d] that the State [was]
responsible for the violation of Article 7 of the Inter-American Convention [on the Prevention, Punishment, and
Eradication of Violence against Women] and Articles 1, 6, and 8 of the Inter-American Convention to Prevent
and Punish Torture, to the detriment of Valentina Rosendo Cantú. Regarding her daughter, it conclude[d] that
the State [was] responsible for violating Article 5(1) of the American Convention, in relation to […] Article 1(1)
of this international instrument” (file of attachments to the application, tome I, annex 1, folio 404).