especially when it faces an event that has cost a person’s life.102 The lack of diligence in the
investigation reported by the petitioners was not refuted by the Ecuadorian State in its
observations. The IACHR thus maintains that, in this case, the State did not proceed with a
diligent investigation of the events that occurred in order to identify the body of Mr. Palma
and determine the reasons for his death.
120. In this respect, as general international law establishes, States are
internationally liable for the actions or omissions of their authorities and bodies that are in
violation of the obligations assumed in the treaties. In this sense, the rights to a fair trial
and to judicial protections established in Articles 8 and 25 of the Convention103 and the
obligation to guarantee the rights protected in the American Convention according to its
Article 1(1)104 are especially relevant vis-à-vis the actions and omissions of the bodies linked
to the administration of justice.
121. The right to a fair trial established in Article 8 of the American Convention
encompasses a set of requirements that must be observed in legal institutions so that people
have the conditions to adequately defend their own rights in the face of any action by the
State.105 For its part, the right to judicial protection contained in Article 25 of the American
Convention requires the existence of adequate and effective remedy that makes it possible
to safeguard fundamental rights.106 A remedy will be considered adequate if it is constituted
as an effective and sufficient means to reach the result desired by the one seeking the
recourse107 and, effective in the sense that it is capable of producing the result for which it
was conceived.108
122. The Inter-American Court has maintained that, according to the American
Convention, the States Party must provide effective judicial recourse to the victims of
human rights violations. Now, this must be substantiated in accordance with the rules of
legal due process, all within the general obligation, under the responsibility of the States
themselves, to guarantee the free and full exercise of the rights recognized by the
Convention for all people under its jurisdiction.109
102
Inter-American Court. Case of Myrna Mack Chang Vs. Guatemala. Merits, Reparations, and Costs.
Judgment of November 25, 2003. Ser. C. No. 101, para. 167; Case of Juan Humberto Sánchez Vs. Honduras.
Preliminary Objections, Merit, Reparations, and Costs. Judgment of June 7, 2003. Ser. C. No. 99, para. 127.
103
Inter-American Court. Case of Ximenes Lopes. Judgment of July 4, 2006. Ser. C. No. 149, para. 173,
Case of Baldeón García. Judgment of April 6, 2006. Ser. C. No. 147, para. 141; Case of López Álvarez. Judgment
of February 1, 2006. Ser. C. No. 141, para. 28; and Case of Herrera Ulloa. Judgment of July 2, 2004. Ser. C., No.
107, para. 109.
104
Inter-American Court. Case of Ximenes Lopes. Judgment of July 4, 2006. Ser. C. No. 149, para. 172;
Case of Baldeón García. Judgment of April 6, 2006. Ser. C. No. 147, para. 140; Case of the Massacre of Pueblo
Bello. Judgment of January 31, 2006. Ser. C. No. 140, para. 111 and 112; and Case of Massacre of Mapiripán.
Judgment of September 15, 2005. Ser. C. No. 134, para. 108.
105
Inter-American Court. Case of Genie Lacayo Vs. Nicaragua. Merits, Reparations, and Costs. Judgment
of January 29, 1997. Ser. C. No. 30, para. 74; Case of Claude Reyes et. al. Vs. Chile. Merits, Reparations, and
Costs. Judgment of September 19, 2006. Ser. C. No. 151. para. 116; and Inter-American Court., Judicial
Guarantees in States of Emergency (Arts. 27.2, 25, and 8 of the American Convention on Human Rights).
Consultative Opinion OC-9/87 of October 6, 1987. Ser. A., No. 9, para. 27.
106
Inter-American Court. Case of Durand and Ugarte Vs. Perú. Merits. Judgment of August 16, 2000.
Ser. C. No. 68, para. 101.
107
Inter-American Court. Case of Godínez Cruz Vs. Honduras. Preliminary Objections. Judgment of June
26, 1987. Ser. C. No. 3, para. 67.
108
Inter-American Court. Case of Velásquez Rodríguez Vs. Honduras. Merits. Judgment of July 29, 1988.
Ser. C. No. 4, para. 66; Case of The Mayagna Community (Sumo) Awas Tingni Vs. Nicaragua. Merits, Reparations,
and Costs. Judgment of August 31, 2001. Ser. C. No. 79, para. 135; and Case of the Dismissed Congressional
Employees (Aguado Alfaro et.al.) Vs. Perú. Preliminary Objections, Merits, Reparations, and Costs. Judgment of
November 24, 2006. Ser. C., No. 158. para. 130.
109
Inter-American Court. Case of Bayarri Vs. Argentina. Preliminary Objections, Merits, Reparations, and
Costs. Judgment of October 30, 2008. Ser. C. No. 187, para. 103; and Case of Kawas Fernández Vs. Honduras.
Merits, Reparations, and Costs. Judgment of April 3, 2009, Ser. C. No. 196, para. 110.