A. Competence ratione personae, ratione materiae, ratione temporis, andratione loci of the Inter-American Commission 18. This case alleges violations of rights recognized and enshrined in the American Convention that would have occurred within the territorial jurisdiction of El Salvador, at a time when the obligation to observe and guarantee all rights established in that instrument was in effect for that State. 4 The IACHR is therefore competent ratione personae, ratione materiae, ratione temporis, and ratione loci to hear the merits of the complaint. B. Other admissibility requirements a. Exhaustion of domestic remedies and filing deadline 19. The State alleges that this case is inadmissible because domestic remedies in El Salvador have not been exhausted. To that end, it cites the investigations in criminal case Nº 112/93, the appointment of a Special Prosecutor for the investigation, and its contact with theAsociación Pro-Búsqueda. 20. The petitioners, in turn, claim that although domestic remedies are ineffective, they have nonetheless pursued all possible means to determine the whereabouts of Ernestina and Erlinda Serrano. The petitioners stress that nearly eight years have passed since the case was reported and that Salvadoran authorities have done absolutely nothing to guarantee an effective investigation or determine who the perpetrators were, punish them and provide reparations to the victims or their family. Although the case remains open, the Salvadoran authorities have not conducted an exhaustive investigation to determine the sisters’ whereabouts. As alleged by the petitioners, the inactive role of the Prosecutor’s Office shows that the domestic remedies available are merely a formality. 21. The information provided to the Commission by both parties in this case agrees that–at the request of the victims’ mother–a criminal investigation began on April 30, 1993 and that, after being closed twice, it was reopened on June 24, 1999. Furthermore, on November 13, 1995 Mrs. María Cruz Franco filed a habeas corpus appeal for her daughters, which was suspended with no results. 22. In this case, members of the Salvadoran Army are allegedly responsible for the forced disappearance of two minors during the internal armed conflict in El Salvador. That era was characterized by systematic human rights violations and impunity, given the inefficacy of the Salvadoran judicial system. 5 Given the specific circumstances in this case and the aforementioned context, the Commission feels that the requirement for the timely presentation of the petition in question was met. 23. As of the date this report was adopted, domestic remedies had not operated with the effectiveness required to investigate a complaint of forced disappearance–a category of serious human rights violations. In fact, nearly eight years have passed since the first complaint was lodged with the authorities in El Salvador, with no definitive finding of how the events transpired. 4 5 The Salvadoran State deposited the instrument of ratification of the American Convention on June 23, 1978. In its annual reports published during the armed conflict, the IACHR issued statements on several occasions about the violence and lack of effective judicial protection of rights. For example: The right to justice has been profoundly affected by the state of emergency that reigns in El Salvador, as indicated earlier. Here it is worth reiterating the Commission’s remarks from its last Annual Report: the American Convention does not authorize the suspension of judicial guarantees that are essential for protecting basic rights, particularly not for prolonged periods, as has been the case in El Salvador. In addition, there is a lack of judicial independence and authority; members of the judiciary have themselves been the target of criminal acts. The marked limitations on judicial guarantees, as stated previously, have left many proceedings unresolved, causing the population to lose confidence in the judicial system. IACHR, Annual Report 1983-1984, Chapter IV “Human Rights Situation in Several States: El Salvador”, para. 6. 4