6
*
*
*
17.
That in its last Orders the Court ordered the State to adopt the following
measures in addition to protecting the prisoners’ lives and physical safety: (a) adjust
the conditions at the prison to the applicable international human rights protection
standards; and (b) investigate the events which led to the adoption of provisional
measures in order to identify those responsible and, if appropriate, impose the
applicable sanctions (supra Having Seen clause N. 1).
18.
That, with regard to the detention conditions prevailing at the Urso Branco
Prison, the State has informed the Court on the separation between convicted and
untried prisoners; the transfer of detainees to other detention centers and the
reduction in overcrowding allegedly caused by the transfers, cutting the number of
inmates down to 900; the improvement in such aspects as the supervision of the
catering supplier, regular medical assistance, hygiene products received by the
prisoners, the regularity of visits from relatives, the acquisition of better security
equipment and fans, and free legal assistance. The representatives have pointed out
that detention conditions continue to be inhumane; that prisoners sleep together on
the cell floors and that the cells have no ventilation, which is particularly serious
considering that the prison is located in an extremely warm and humid area; that the
prison houses more than twice as many inmates as it was built to accommodate; that
prisoners have no activities and are completely idle, and they are only allowed to go
out in the sun once a week; that water supply is poor, so many suffer from
dehydration, and it is of extremely bad quality, just as the food; that there is no
permanent medical service, and that the overcrowding and the poor hygiene conditions
favor the spread of infectious diseases. Finally, the Commission stated that the
inmates continue to be subjected to inhumane and degrading detention conditions.
19.
That the State has, with regard to all persons under its jurisdiction, the general
duties to respect and guarantee the full enjoyment and exercise of rights, not only in
connection with the power of the State but also in relation to acts of individual third
parties. Special duties derive from these general obligations which are ascertainable on
the basis of the particular protection needs of the subject of rights, whether on account
of his personal situation or the specific circumstances pertinent to him,4 such as
detention. The Court has pointed out that the State has a special position as guarantor
of the persons kept under custody, on account of the particular control relationship
between an inmate and the State. Under such circumstances, the State’s general duty
to respect and safeguard rights becomes particularly important as it binds the State,
4
Cf. I/A Court H.R. Case of the Pueblo Bello Massacre v. Colombia. Merits, Reparations and Costs.
Judgment of January 31, 2006. Series C N. 140, para. 111; I/A Court H.R. Case of the Rochela Massacre v.
Colombia. Merits, Reparations and Costs Judgment of May 11, 2007. Series C N. 163, para. 67; and I/A
Court H.R. Case of Albán Cornejo et al. v. Ecuador Merits, Reparations and Costs. Judgment of November
22, 2007. Series C N. 171, para. 120.