Inter-American Human Rights Research Articles

Regionalizing Business and Human Rights: Corporate Accountability in the European, African and Inter-American Human Rights Systems

The current framework and discourse of “Business and Human Rights” (B&HR) focuses mainly on the universal level. In contrast, this contribution asks how regional human rights systems respond to the problem of corporate accountability in general, and to the B&HR framework in particular. On the basis of a regional comparison, the contribution argues for a contextualized, functional doctrine of direct corporate obligations under international law. This doctrine is nascent in regional human rights law, especially in the case law of the Inter-American system. It is best explained, justified and limited by a functional theory of human rights that determines corporate obligations by reference to the functions human rights per-form in concrete political contexts. To elaborate this argument, the article first surveys the regional contexts and responses to the B&HR framework in the European, Inter-American and African human rights systems. In s second step, it turns to a systematic in-depth compar-ison of the regional approaches to corporate accountability, and elaborates its own theory of direct corporate obligations based on a contextual-functionalist comparison.

The Effectiveness of European Social Charter and Inter-American Human Rights Systems: Enforcement Mechanisms and Obstacles

The Effectiveness of European Social Charter and Inter-American Human Rights Systems: Enforcement Mechanisms and Obstacles

Trackers and Trailblazers: Dynamic Interactions and Institutional Design in the Inter-American Court of Human Rights

Abstract The Inter-American Court’s negative reputation as a judicial activist is often contrasted with its influence in the Inter-American Human Rights System. Despite often issuing broad judgments, the Court has remained a reference and a standard for human rights in the region. This article aims to examine this phenomenon by examining the Court’s institutional powers. The article claims that the Court’s tendency towards judicial activism does not contradict its functions, but rather reflects domestic judicial tendencies and cultures. Domestic judicial cultures and states’ interactions with the Court provide context for the interpretation of its powers and its role in the Inter-American System. The article, therefore, suggests that argumentative legal exchange engaged by the Court and Member States is a healthy way of promoting mutual accountability, while maintaining flexibility for adaptations by both parties and preserving the internal coherence of the regional system.

Del Estado constitucional al Estado convencional de Derecho. Estudio Preliminar sobre el modelo del Estado Convencional de Derecho, en el contexto latinoamericano

El presente artículo de revisión se encarga de construir un referente conceptual preliminar para efecto de una investigación amplia sobre las herramientas constitucionales de integración del derecho nacional e internacional de los derechos humanos en el contexto latinoamericano. En esta medida, con una metodología exploratoria, establece los elementos iniciales del Estado Convencional de Derecho, como modelo para el entendimiento de los desarrollos latinoamericanos vinculados, en términos generales, con el nuevo constitucionalismo y con el establecimiento del control de convencionalidad en los países pertenecientes al sistema interamericano de derechos humanos. De tal modo, el texto expondrá, desde una concepción estatal formalista y durante cuatro (04) acápites previos a las conclusiones, el proceso de mutación sufrido por el Estado de Derecho, en su devenir jurídico, hasta llegar al modelo sugerido, compilando presupuestos comprensivos y los desarrollos de la doctrina que ayudarán a entender esta transformación.

El caso de los buzos miskitos: un laboratorio vivo para auditar la adaptabilidad del Sistema Interamericano de Derechos Humanos

This paper addresses the level of adaptability of the Inter-American Human Rights System towards different issues, such as the human rights of legal entities and the international responsibility of legal persons for human rights violations. This analysis is made through the lecture and narration of the case Opario Lemoth Morris y otros vs. Honduras, which has been recently summited before the Inter-American Human Rights Court.

La protección de datos personales y el derecho al olvido en el Perú. A propósito de los estándares internacionales del Sistema Interamericano de los Derechos Humanos

In 2014, the Court of Justice of the European Union recognized the right to be forgotten based on the interpretation of a regulatory framework related to the protection of personal data. Over time, many Latin American countries, including Peru, have enacted laws regulating the processing of personal data. The Directorate for the Protection of Personal Data of Peru, from the entry into force of Law N° 29733, Protection of Personal Data Law, has recognized the exercise of the right to be forgotten and has ordered the de-indexing from search engine content. On the other hand, in the Inter-American Human Rights System, through the Office of the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression, this right has been rejected. This is because, as it has been conceived in the European system, freedom of expression would be illegitimately restricted. This article aims to analyze the content of the right to be forgotten, as well as the limitations that must be observed at the time of recognition. Likewise, the challenges faced by this right in the Peruvian regulatory system will be evidenced, considering the criteria adopted by the Constitutional Court of Peru, as well as those adopted within the Inter-American Human Rights System.

Remarks by Karen J. Alter

Any speculation about the promise and future of multilateralism in Latin America turns fundamentally on what we mean by multilateralism. If multilateralism is defined in numeric terms, as any formal cooperative endeavor undertaken by three or more states, then it is easy to predict that multilateralism is going to be an ongoing feature international politics everywhere. If the question concerns the future of particular Latin American multilateral institutions, such as the Inter-American Human Rights system, Mercosur, or the Andean Community, there might be greater worry and room for disagreement. We would then want to know “what part of the inter-American Human Rights system/Mercosur/Andean Community are you talking about?”

Guatemala, die Amnestiefrage und das Inter-Amerikanische Menschenrechtssystem: Implikationen für den Kampf gegen die Straflosigkeit

This article explores the recent setback in Guatemala’s fight against impunity triggered by the introduction of amnesty bill 5377 and the role of the Inter-American Human Rights System (IAHRS) in stemming the tide of impunity. Both the Inter-American Commission and Court have rejected amnesties for international crimes as a matter of principle; the Inter-American Court has even gone as far as invalidating domestic amnesty laws considered to be incompatible with the American Convention on Human Rights. This contribution adopts a subsidiarity perspective, which posits that an assessment of the legitimacy of IAHRS interference into Guatemalan affairs should be based on the principle of normative individualism. This means that lower-level units can claim the right to non-interference only as long as they respect basic human rights. This rights-based interpretation of subsidiarity legitimises the IAHRS’ involvement in the controversy surrounding bill 5377.

A descriminalização do desacato em face da proteção da liberdade de expressão

A liberdade de expressão é um dos pilares do regime Democrático de Direito. O crime de desacato, consubstanciado no desrespeito a funcionário público no exercício da sua função, ou em razão dela, limita a liberdade de expressão. A ratificação da Convenção Americana de Direitos Humanos pelo Brasil, em 1992, impôs ao país a necessidade de sua internalização, além da observância dos precedentes firmados pela Corte Interamericana de Direitos Humanos. O controle de convencionalidade de matriz interna deve ser realizado para evitar divergências entre as normas nacionais e o Sistema Interamericano de Direitos Humanos.

Judging Inter-American Human Rights: The Riddle of Compliance with the Inter-American Court of Human Rights

The use of compliance studies to evaluate the effectiveness of international human rights courts can produce misleading results because a focus on compliance considers the behaviour of only one stakeholder in the dynamic that is human rights adjudication: the state. A survey of petitioners in cases before the IACtHR, together with a review of literature surrounding strategic litigation before the Inter-American system, demonstrate how civil society organisations value the declarative justice provided by the Court, how they mobilise around human rights litigation and how adept they are at deploying rulings in such a way as to produce impact beyond compliance and even in the absence of any compliance at all.

Law and Politics in the Inter-American System

AbstractThe Inter-American Human Rights System takes into account domestic political contexts in ways that sometimes have not been fully recognized. International human rights courts face a tension between the goal of expanding rights and the need to gain legitimacy with domestic constituencies. Cases involving national amnesty laws have posed this dilemma in acute fashion in the Inter-American System. An analysis of those cases and their domestic political contexts shows how the Commission and the Court have taken into account domestic circumstances, the first through the timing of referrals and the second through the Court’s jurisprudence.

Constitutional amendment and international human rights standards: a multilevel approach with particular focus on the Spanish case

The present paper focuses on the influence of international human rights standards in constitutional review procedures, by taking the internationalisation of the constituent function as the main premise in parallel with the internationalisation of human rights. With this in mind, the author submits to scrutiny the positive impact of both universal (United Nations) and regional human rights standards (including comparative approaches to the European and Inter-American human rights) on the adoption of new constitutional provisions (with special focus on Spain). From this perspective, the author also emphasises the complementary synergies between international and national jurisdictions as an ordinary mechanism to defend the national constitutional order in the light of international human rights instruments. The paper concludes that, while international human rights standards are modified to adjust themselves to new needs and realities, such external modifications may require constitutional amendments via a positive exercise of the constituent function.

Constitutional amendment and international human rights standards: a multilevel approach with particular focus on the Spanish case

The present paper focuses on the influence of international human rights standards in constitutional review procedures, by taking the internationalisation of the constituent function as the main premise in parallel with the internationalisation of human rights. With this in mind, the author submits to scrutiny the positive impact of both universal (United Nations) and regional human rights standards (including comparative approaches to the European and Inter-American human rights) on the adoption of new constitutional provisions (with special focus on Spain). From this perspective, the author also emphasises the complementary synergies between international and national jurisdictions as an ordinary mechanism to defend the national constitutional order in the light of international human rights instruments. The paper concludes that, while international human rights standards are modified to adjust themselves to new needs and realities, such external modifications may require constitutional amendments via a positive exercise of the constituent function.

Die Regionalisierung von Wirtschaft und Menschenrechten: Unternehmensverantwortung im Europäischen, Afrikanischen und Inter-Amerikanischen Menschenrechtsystem

The current framework and discourse of “Business and Human Rights” (B&HR) focuses mainly on the universal level. In contrast, this contribution asks how regional human rights systems respond to the problem of corporate accountability in general, and to the B&HR framework in particular. On the basis of a regional comparison, the contribution argues for a contextualised, functional doctrine of direct corporate obligations under international law. This doctrine is nascent in regional human rights law, especially in the case law of the Inter-American system. It is best explained, justified and limited by a functional theory of human rights that determines corporate obligations by reference to the functions human rights perform in concrete political contexts. To elaborate this argument, the article first surveys the regional contexts and responses to the B&HR framework in the European, Inter-American and African human rights systems. In s second step, it turns to a systematic in-depth comparison of the regional approaches to corporate accountability, and elaborates its own theory of direct corporate obligations based on a contextual-functionalist comparison.

LA JUSTICIABILIDAD DE LOS DERECHOS ECONÓMICOS, SOCIALES Y CULTURALES: EVOLUCIÓN DE SU APLICACIÓN EN LA CORTE INTERAMERICANA DE DERECHOS HUMANOS

El presente ensayo describe —en un primer momento— la problemática en torno a la justiciabilidad de los derechos económicos, sociales y culturales, advirtiendo los posibles supuestos que justifican la no-justiciabilidad y la posición que sobre aquellos puede levantarse a partir de los instrumentos internacionales y regionales de protección de derechos humanos así como de las fuentes de interpretación que han sido desarrolladas por órganos oficiales. En un segundo momento, se describe la aplicación evolutiva del artículo 26 de la Convención Americana de Derechos Humanos en las sentencias de la Corte Interamericana de Derechos Humanos y los estándares utilizados a dicho efecto, a fin de concluir finalmente que los derechos económicos, sociales y culturales son —en efecto— justiciables en dicha corte.

Alcance del deber de investigar, juzgar y sancionar en transiciones de conflicto armado a una paz negociada: convergencias entre el Sistema Interamericano de Derechos Humanos y la Corte Penal Internacional

El presente artículo analiza el alcance de la obligación de investigar, juzgar y sancionar en escenarios de transición de conflicto armado a una paz negociada, a la luz de la jurisprudencia del Sistema Interamericano de Derechos Humanos (SIDH) y del marco jurídico que rige a la Corte Penal Internacional (CPI). A través de un análisis doctrinal y jurisprudencial, las autoras identifican que existen debates, vacíos y cuestiones problemáticas en la determinación de la obligación de investigar, juzgar y sancionar, y que para darle mayor claridad deben analizarse conjuntamente el SIDH y el marco normativo de la CPI, ya que pueden resultar complementarios teniendo en cuenta el alto contenido penal de la obligación. Así mismo, las autoras evidencian que la existencia de vacíos en la determinación de la obligación, especialmente en relación con las conductas objeto de la obligación y la posibilidad de seleccionar casos y concentrarse en los máximos responsables, tiene graves consecuencias para la seguridad jurídica de los Estados y de los ciudadanos.

Entitlement of Legal Entities to Hold Rights under the Inter-American Human Rights Protection System

Abstract At present, both domestic and international law are increasingly starting to recognize corporations, other private non-natural persons and even public legal entities as subjects of human rights. A significant question of the study is whether such private or public legal entities can find any direct protection under the Inter-American Human Rights System, and if so, on what conditions. In this regard, the study analyzes the advisory opinion of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights OC-22/16, adopted on 26 February 2016. The study also focuses on international standards concerning the rights of legal entities to seek protection in universal and regional human rights systems. The main method used in the study is a formal analytical model. Beyond the analysis of the advisory opinion, the study focuses on basics regulations of European, African and United Nations human rights systems.

ILO Convention 169 in the inter-American human rights system: consultation and consent

ABSTRACTThe impact of Convention 169 on Indigenous and Tribal Peoples in countries independent of the International Labor Organization (hereinafter Convention 169), on the rights of indigenous peoples is unquestionable. Since its adoption (the Convention 169 was adopted by the ILO on 27 June 1989, in Geneva), 22 countries have ratified it with consequences that range from: its incorporation into internal regulation; constitutional, legislative and institutional modifications aimed at incorporating its standards; changes in practices in dealing with indigenous peoples; and rulings of domestic courts of justice that incorporate the Convention's standards in their decisions, among others. However, its impact has not been limited to the countries that ratified it, but it has crossed these borders, since it is considered a minimum standard in the discussions regarding other international instruments on the rights of indigenous peoples or has been incorporated, through the mechanism of its application or interpretation, in the decisions of international human rights organisations, both universal and regional. The following pages will deal with the incorporation of ILO's Convention 169 in the inter-American human rights system, regarding consultation and consent.

International institutional design and human rights: The case of the Inter-American Human Rights System

Most studies examining the effectiveness of international human rights law treat international human rights institutions as equally (un)influential on state behavior. I argue that institutional design explains variation in state response to international human rights law. Using the institutions in the Inter-American Human Rights System (Court and Commission), I argue that judgments from the highly legalized body (Court) are associated with human rights improvements, while decisions from the less legalized body (Commission) are associated with a greater likelihood of formal complaints. Using the Ill-Treatment and Torture data and original data on Commission decisions, I find support for these expectations.

International institutional design and human rights: The case of the Inter-American Human Rights System:

Most studies examining the effectiveness of international human rights law treat international human rights institutions as equally (un)influential on state behavior. I argue that institutional des...