American Convention on Human Rights

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How to Protect Human Rights in Times of Corona? Lessons from the Inter-American Human Rights System

May 1, 2020

The American Convention on Human Rights (ACHR) has weathered many storms in its fifty years of existence. However, the challenges which arise from the Corona pandemic are unprecedented, also for the Inter-American human rights system. With many of its political and economic systems already under strain, the pandemic will have severe consequences on the enjoyment of civic freedoms as well as economic and social rights in the whole region. In all likelihood, it will also disproportionately affect vulnerable groups, including the poor, migrants, women and children, as well as indigenous people. As the crisis has exacerbated throughout last month, several states have already unilaterally derogated from their treaty obligations under the American Convention. While many analysis in recent days have highlighted how this decision affects the European human rights regime (see for instance here, here, here, here), this contribution offers a comparative perspective by focusing on the Inter-American human rights system. In this post, we will look at the law and practice of derogations…

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Beyond “Good Neighborliness” in the ICJ 1 October 2018 Judgment in Bolivia v. Chile: Do Human Rights and Sustainable Development Obligate Creating Negotiated Access for Landlocked Bolivia to the Pacific Ocean?

October 4, 2018

On 1 October 2018, the International Court of Justice issued its Judgment on the Merits in Obligation to Negotiate Access to the Pacific Ocean (Bolivia v. Chile), finding, by 12 votes to 3, that Chile "did not undertake a legal obligation to negotiate sovereign access to the Pacific Ocean" for Bolivia and rejecting all other submissions of Bolivia.  While…

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Inter-American Court of Human Rights condemns Venezuelan regime’s political persecution against the opposition in the San Miguel Sosa and others case

June 25, 2018

The Inter-American Court of Human Rights (hereinafter, IACtHR) published a recent decision (only available in Spanish) in the San Miguel Sosa and others vs. Venezuela case, by means of which it rebuts frequent arguments relied on by the Chavista[d1] –i.e. based on the ideas of former president Hugo Chávez— regime of Nicolás Maduro that label external and foreign…

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The IACtHR Advisory Opinion: one step forward or two steps back for LGBTI rights in Costa Rica?

February 27, 2018

On 9th January 2018, the IACtHR issued Advisory Opinion No. 24 on gender identity, equality and non-discrimination for same-sex couples, a ground-breaking decision for the advancement of LGBTI rights in the Americas. However, the adverse effect it had on the recent presidential elections in Costa Rica may jeopardise this achievement. The Advisory Opinion was requested by…

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The Rise of Environmental Law in International Dispute Resolution: Inter-American Court of Human Rights issues Landmark Advisory Opinion on Environment and Human Rights

February 26, 2018

The Inter-American Court’s Advisory Opinion on Environment and Human Rights, released on 7 February 2018 (in Spanish only) (for brevity “AO”), is the latest and potentially most significant decision in a series of high profile international judicial rulings which acknowledge legal consequences for environmental harm. As recently as 2 February 2018, the International Court of Justice in…

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