themselves incompetent to hear it, and that this showed that the remedies filed with the courts of Salta with respect to indigenous lands could not be considered as " effective remedies" in the terms of the jurisprudence established by bodies of the inter-American system. 49. On November 10, 2005, the petitioners reported to the Commission on the official results of the referendum held on October 23, 2005 in the Department of Rivadavia, Province of Salta, in which the “yes” side won. 50. With respect to the lands distribution policy being implemented by the Province of Salta since the referendum, the petitioners maintain that the provincial government began, in early 2005, to issue the necessary rules to begin the process of delivering lands at its discretion. With respect to the national government, the petitioners indicate that, although it had prepared an alternative proposal for land distribution, which was to a large extent consistent with international standards regarding indigenous territorial rights, there were no signs that it was taking any effective steps to block the Province's action. The petitioners argue that in this context, the continuing felling of trees and lumber, the construction of dwellings, the delivery of individual properties in an arbitrary and uninformed manner, the indifference of the provincial government to the national proposal, among other aspects, are subjecting the community to a situation of insecurity and uncertainty that prevents it from defending and protecting its rights. B. The State 51. With respect to the exhaustion of domestic remedies, the State, in its initial response of July 7, 1999, declared that, although the petitioners had launched and exhausted all domestic remedies with respect to amparo (constitutional protection) they had not met the requirements of Article 46.1 of the American Convention. The State maintains that there is another appropriate route for resolving such a complex dispute, and that the petitioners should have attempted a procedure that would have addressed the substance of the issue. 52. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the State indicates that, while in no way recognizing or admitting any illegal act on its part, the National Institute of Indigenous Affairs (INAI) considers that construction of the international bridge over the Pilcomayo River between Misión La Paz in Argentina and Pozo Hondo in Paraguay, as well as other roads and various buildings, is appreciably changing the way of