-7-
of weapons inside the confinement facility (supra Having Seen clauses No. 2(c), 2(e)
and 3(h)).
12.
That, based on the information supplied by the Commission, several
measures have been or are about to be adopted for the purpose of protecting the life
and physical integrity of the correctional community in Venezuela, as well as to
improve the confinement conditions of the inmates (supra Having Seen clauses No.
2(i), 2(j) and 2(k)). Such measures include, most importantly, the creation of the
Presidential Commission on the Correctional Emergency, the inspections carried out
in search of weapons inside the prison, and the review and revocation of certain
provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure, among others.
13.
That, under the circumstances of the case at hand, the Commission claims
that several inmates have been killed and injured as a result of fights among the
prisoners.
14.
That the State’s obligation to protect all persons subject to its jurisdiction
includes the duty to control the action of private third parties, an obligation
5
enforceable as against all.
15.
That the State is required to immediately adopt such measures as may be
necessary to efficiently and conclusively prevent all violence at the Yare Prison, in a
manner such that no inmate is killed or their physical integrity impaired. Such
measures include measures intended to prevent future uprisings or other situations
that may disturb the peace at said center. In quashing disturbances such as the ones
that took place in the instant case, the State is to act in line and in accordance with
its municipal laws and regulations, seeking to maintain public order, provided,
however, that such laws and regulations and the action taken pursuant thereto are,
in turn, in line with the applicable human rights protection rules.6 As a matter of fact,
as noted on previous occasions, the Court recognizes the existence of the State’s
power, and even its obligation, to guarantee security and maintain public order.
However, the State’s power in this regard is not unbounded; the State must act
within boundaries and pursuant to the procedures that allow the preservation of
public security and the fundamental rights of human beings.7 In this regard, the
Tribunal believes that force or coercive instruments may only be used in exceptional
cases, if all other means of control have been unsuccessfully tried first.
5
Cf. Matter of Monagas Judicial Confinement Center (“La Pica”). Provisional Measures. supra note
3, Considering clause No. 16; Matter of Children Deprived of Liberty in the “Complexo do Tatuapé” of
FEBEM. Provisional Measures, supra note 3, Considering clause No. 14; and Matter of Eloisa Barrios et al.
Provisional Measures. Order of the President of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights of September
22, 2005, Considering clause No. 7.
6
Cf. Matter of Monagas Judicial Confinement Center (“La Pica”). Provisional Measures; supra note
3, Considering clause No. 17; Matter of Children Deprived of Liberty in the “Complexo do Tatuapé” of
FEBEM. Provisional Measures, supra note 3, Considering clause No. 12; and Matter of Urso Branco Prison.
Provisional Measures. Order of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights of July 7, 2004, Considering
clause No. 12.
7
Cf. Matter of Monagas Judicial Confinement Center (“La Pica”). Provisional Measures, supra note
3, Considering clause No. 17; Matter of Children Deprived of Liberty in the “Complexo do Tatuapé” of
FEBEM. Provisional Measures, supra note 3, Considering clause No. 12; and Matter of Urso Branco Prison.
Provisional Measures, supra note 6, Considering clause No. 12.
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