7.
On January 15, 2008, the petitioners requested an extension for
purposes of presenting their observations. The Commission acceded to their
request on January 18, 2008, and gave the petitioners a one-month extension
to submit their observations. The petitioners filed their reply on February 18,
2008, which was forwarded to the State on April 17, 2008. The latter was
asked to present its observations within one month’s period. On May 20,
2008, the State requested an extension, which the Commission granted on
May 28, 2008, giving the State a June 17, 2008 deadline for filing its
observations. However, the period set elapsed without observations being
received from the State.
III.
A.
POSITIONS OF THE PARTIES
Position of the petitioners
8.
The petitioners allege that Paola del Rosario Guzmán Albarracín, age
16, was a student in the third year of the basic curriculum at the “Dr. Miguel
Martínez Serrano” National Technical High School for Business and
Administration, which is a public school under the supervision of the Ministry
of Education of the Republic of Ecuador and located in Guayaquil. They
contend that in 2001, when the alleged victim was 14 and in her second year
of the basic curriculum, Paola del Rosario began to have difficulties in two
subjects, and was facing the prospect of having to repeat the year. They
allege that the assistant principal of the school offered to help her “on the
condition that she would go out with him.” 1 They allege further that Paola del
Rosario told her mother, Petita Paulina Albarracín Albán, about the offer of
assistance, but did not tell her of the condition that the assistant principal had
set. They assert that the mother met with the assistant principal and decided
that her daughter should repeat the school year, which is what allegedly
happened.
9.
The petitioners contend that the assistant principal continued to harass
Paola del Rosario for the rest of the school year. The petitioners note, for
example, how Paola del Rosario told a friend that the assistant principal had
“forced her to touch his genitals by cornering her against his desk” and how
1
Original petition received at the IACHR at October 2, 2006, paragraph 3.
3