owing to the violations declared in this Judgment, the Court finds it pertinent to establish, in equity,
the sum of US$1,250,000.00 (one million, two hundred and fifty thousand United States dollars) for
the Sarayaku People as compensation for non-pecuniary damage. This amount must be paid to the
Association of Sarayaku People (Tayjasaruta), within one year of notification of this Judgment, so
that the money may be invested as the People see fit, in accordance with its own decision-making
mechanisms and institutions, among other aspects, for the implementation of educational, cultural,
food security, health care and eco-tourism development projects or other community infrastructure
projects or projects of collective interest that the People considers a priority.
D. Costs and Expenses
324. As the Court has indicated on previous occasions, costs and expenses are included under the
heading of reparations established in Article 63(1) of the American Convention.372
D.1 Arguments by the parties
325. The Commission asked the Court, “after hearing the representatives of the injured party, to
order the State to pay the costs and expenses […], taking into account the special characteristics of
the case.”
326. The representatives asked the Court to order the State to pay costs and expenses for the
Sarayaku People, and its representatives, Mario Melo and CEJIL, for the following disbursements:
expenses incurred by the People;373 expenses incurred by the lawyer Mario Melo before the interAmerican system,374 and expenses incurred by CEJIL.375 In total, they requested that the Court
establish in equity the sum of US$152,417.26 for costs and expenses.
372
Cf. Case of Garrido and Baigorria v. Argentina. Reparations and costs. Judgment of August 27, 1998. Series C. No.
39, para. 79 and Case of Forneron and daughter v. Argentina, para. 198.
373
Regarding this item, they indicated that, “over the past seven years, activities related to the case have obliged
Sarayaku leaders and members to travel regularly to Puyo and Quito (Ecuador), Washington DC (United States of America),
Asunción (Paraguay) and San José (Costa Rica).” They added that, while some of the expenses incurred have been covered
by non-governmental organizations, other expenses have had to be covered by the Sarayaku People and that “these
expenses amount […] to a US$5,000 a year. […] Since the Sarayaku People have not saved receipts for most of the expenses
incurred, they are asking the Court to order, in equity, payment of a total of US$35,000.” In their final written arguments,
the representatives indicated that the Sarayaku People had received support from the Victims’ Legal Assistance Fund of the
Court, and therefore they did not request the reimbursement of any expenses additional to those included in the pleadings
and motions brief.
374
The representatives requested the reimbursement of the costs and expenses arising from the defense undertaken
by the lawyer Mario Melo, as a member of the team of the Centro de Derechos Económicos y Sociales (CDES) between 2003
and 2007, and as a member of the Pachamama Foundation team from 2007 to date. In particular, they indicated that “the
costs arising from their professional services and the costs of travel to places such as Puyo and Sarayaku in Ecuador,
Washington DC (United States of America) and San José (Costa Rica) to take different measures in this case, the collection of
evidence and the notarization of documents have been covered by the CDES and the Pachamama Foundation at an average
cost of US$13,569.97 a year.” Therefore, they requested that the Court order a payment, in equity, to cover the costs
incurred by the CDES and the Pachamama Foundation. In their final written arguments, they requested, in addition to the
aforementioned costs and expenses, reimbursement of costs and expenses incurred by representatives of the Kichwa People
of Sarayaku from the presentation of the pleadings and motions brief in September 2010 to the holding of the public hearing
in this case at the seat of the Court in Costa Rica. Accordingly, they asked the Court to order payment, in equity, to the said
organizations, CDES and Pachamama, of US$13,569.97. In total, they asked the Court to establish in equity the sum of
US$73,569.97.
375
The representatives asked the Court to order the State to reimburse the Center for Justice and International Law
(CEJIL), for costs and expenses incurred in representing the victims and their families in the international proceedings
starting in 2003 and to establish in equity the sum of US$28,056.29 for expenses, and that this payment be made by the
State directly to the representatives. In addition, they asked the Court to establish in equity the sum of US$15,791.00 to
cover the costs incurred by CEJIL from the presentation of the pleadings and motions brief up until the present. Lastly, they
asked that they be awarded any future expenses that arise; these include, inter alia, “travel and additional expenses of
witnesses and experts to any possible hearing before the Court; travel by the representatives to the Court; and the costs
involved in obtaining future evidence.” In total they asked the Court to establish in equity the sum of US$43,847.29.
88
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