60
b)
Develop protocols for procedures in this matter with an interdisciplinary approach and
train the officials involved in the investigation of serious human rights violations so that they
are able to use the available legal, technical and scientific elements;
c)
Promote pertinent actions of international cooperation with other States in order to
facilitate the collection and exchange of information, as well as other relevant legal actions;
d)
Ensure that the different bodies of the justice system involved in the case have the
human, financial, logistical, scientific and other resources necessary to perform their tasks
adequately, independently and impartially, and adopt the necessary measures to guarantee
that judicial, prosecutorial and investigative officials and other agents of justice have an
adequate security and protection system, which takes into account the circumstances of the
cases for which they are responsible and the place where they work, so that they can perform
their functions with due diligence, and to protect witnesses, victims and next of kin; and
e)
Guarantee that public officials and private citizens do not obstruct, sidetrack or unduly
delay the investigations aimed at elucidating the truth of the facts, through appropriate and
effective mechanisms.
190. As to the representatives’ request that the Office of the Attorney General of the Republic create
a Special Commission or train members of the Human Rights Unit on the issue of forced disappearance
of children, the Court does not consider it pertinent to order an additional measure, given that those
set forth in the preceding paragraph provide an adequate framework within which that body can
articulate the mechanisms that are best suited to its organic structure, with the aim of establishing
effective internal coordination to monitor cases involving the forced disappearance of children during
the armed conflict, in order to achieve more coherent and effective investigations.
191. Finally, the State must ensure that victims, or their next of kin, have full access and capacity
to act at all stages of the investigation and prosecution of those responsible.294 In addition, the results
of the corresponding proceedings must be made public so that Salvadoran society can learn about
the facts that are the subject of this case, as well as those responsible for them.295
2.
Determination of the whereabouts of José Adrián Rochac Hernández, Santos Ernesto
Salinas, Emelinda Lorena Hernández, Manuel Antonio Bonilla and Ricardo Abarca Ayala
192. The Commission asked the Court to order the State to conduct a thorough, impartial and
effective investigation into the fate or whereabouts of José Adrián Rochac Hernández, Santos Ernesto
Salinas, Emelinda Lorena Hernández, Manuel Antonio Bonilla and Ricardo Abarca Ayala and, in the
event that they are found, to make the necessary efforts to ensure family reunification. In the event
that they are no longer alive, the State must adopt the measures necessary to return the remains to
their next of kin. In its final arguments, the Commission asked that the Court, in addition to
establishing the State’s obligation to determine the fate or whereabouts of the victims, make specific
reference in its judgment to: (i) the current legislative process and the need to ensure the juridical
security and continuity of the National Search Commission; (ii) the need to allocate sufficient budget
and specialist and interdisciplinary personnel; (iii) the need to establish and implement coercive
mechanisms to address the supposed of lack of cooperation from other State entities; and (iv) the
need to create effective channels of coordination with the Public Prosecution Service and the judicial
authorities.
Cf. Case of El Caracazo v. Venezuela. Reparations and costs. Judgment of August 29, 2002. Series C No. 95, para.
118, and Case of Osorio Rivera and Family v. Peru, supra, para. 245.
294
Cf. Case of El Caracazo v. Venezuela. Reparations and costs, supra, para. 118, and Case of Osorio Rivera and Family
V. Peru, supra, para. 245.
295