30
143. The representative claimed that the victim must be compensated for lost
wages as of his arrest The representative set the amount of US$ 233.685, 08 (two
hundred thirty-three thousand six hundred eighty-five with 08/100 cents dollars of
the United States of America).
144. As to the non-pecuniary damage, the representative indicated that during two
years, Mr. Barreto Leiva suffered “a systematic and aggressive campaign, verbal
insults, slander, lies and strong epithets, most of them degrading, daily transmitted
by radio, television and printed media”. It further asserted that his social life was
“seriously affected” and that he was forced to send his two minor daughters to study
abroad. The amount that, for this item, is requested substantially varies from the
brief of pleadings and motions to the brief of final arguments. While in the first brief,
the representative requested US$ 150.000, 00 (a hundred and fifty thousand dollars
of the United States of America), in the last brief, it requested US$ 250.000, 00 (two
hundred and fifty thousand dollars of the United States of America). The
representative did not explain the reason for such an increase.
145. Finally, the representative indicated that Mr. Barreto Leiva had to incur in
medical expenses "in order to receive psychological rehabilitation after having been
publicly attacked". The representative asked as compensation for this item the
amount of US$ 5.000, 00 (five thousand dollars of the United States of America).
The representative did not furnish any type of supporting evidence for these
expenses.
146. The State mentioned, in a general way, that "all the ups and downs that Mr.
Oscar Barreto Leiva went through, after being tried by the Venezuelan courts [...]
were the result of the mistakes made during the performance of his role as public
servant”.
147. In the first place, the Tribunal emphasizes that the pecuniary damage as well
as the non-pecuniary damage so alleged do not relate to the violations of the
American Convention mentioned in this Judgment, but to the conviction of Mr.
Barreto Leiva, at the domestic level. As established in paragraph 24 supra, it does
not fall upon the Court to analyze the guilt or innocence of Mr. Barreto Leiva and,
therefore, to order reparations in this regard; rather, the Court must solely and
exclusively analyze the violations of the Convention declared in this judgment. It is
for the domestic courts to assess which are the reparations that should be ordered
for Mr. Barreto Leiva in case the situation indicated in paragraph 130 supra occurs.
148. Based on the foregoing, the Tribunal abstains from ordering a compensation
for the alleged pecuniary and non-pecuniary damage under the terms mentioned by
the representative. The Court, however, must acknowledge that the violations
declared in this Judgment resulted in a non-pecuniary damage, since it is part of
human nature itself that any person who suffers a violation of their human rights
experiments suffering.82 Therefore, the Court equitable determines the amount of
US$ 15.000, 00 (fifty thousand dollars of the United States of America) that must be
delivered to Mr. Barreto Leiva directly.
6.2.
Reimbursement of costs and expenses
149. In the brief of pleadings and motions, the representative pointed out that the
“cost of the filing of the remedies before the domestic instances, investigation in
courts, press and television since the year 1996 to the present, plus the photocopies,
82
Cf. Case of Reverón TrujilloV. Venezuela, supra note 21, para. 176.