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According to its Rules of Procedure, the IACHR is authorized to hold public hearings, which can be held on its own initiative or at the request of an interested party. The hearings may have the purpose of receiving information from the parties with respect to a petition, a case being processed before the Commission, follow-up to recommendations, precautionary measures, or general or particular information related to human rights in one or more Members States of the OAS. These hearings are part of the Commission's human rights monitoring function and are carried out within the framework of periods of sessions.
The Commission held its first session in 1960 and has held an average of four ordinary and extraordinary sessions per year since then. Sessions may be held in Washington, DC, or in one of the Member States, at the invitation of the host country. The first session of the IACHR in a CARICOM State was held in Jamaica in 2019 and the second in Haiti in 2020.
During the sessions, the Commission makes decisions on the admissibility of petitions, on the merits of cases, and on the referral of them to the Inter-American Court. The Commission also holds working meetings and public hearings on topics of interest.
Below you will find a list of public hearings held in CARICOM countries. Please refer to this page to search for specific hearings and to have access to its recordings.
Participants: Federación de Pueblos Indígenas Kechwa Chazuta Amazonía (FEPIKECHA)Consejo Étnico de los Pueblos Kichwa de la Amazonía (CEPKA)
Federación de Pueblos Indígenas Kechwas del Bajo Huallaga San Martín (FEPIKBHSAM)
Coordinadora de Desarrollo y Defensa de los Pueblos Indígenas de la región San Martín (CODEPISAM)
Asociación Interétnica de Desarrollo de la Selva Peruana (AIDESEP)
Instituto de Defensa Legal (IDL) de Perú
Centro de Estudios de Derecho, Justicia y Sociedad (Dejusticia) de Colombia
Amerindian Peoples Association (APA) de Guyana
Forest Peoples Programme (FPP)
Due Process of Law Foundation (DPLF)
Topics: Rights of Indigenous PeoplesEconomic, Social, Cultural and Environmental Rights
Participants: Arnaud Royer, Human rights component in UN Integrated Office in Haiti Impunité pour les violences sexuelles contre les femmes et les filles
State of Haiti
Topics: Rights of ChildrenRights of Women
Participants: Danuta RadzikElizabeth Deane Hughes
Karen de Souza
Red Thread
Vanda Radzik
State of Guyana
Topics: Economic, Social, Cultural and Environmental Rights
Participants: Stand Up for JamaicaState of Jamaica
Topics: Rights of Persons Deprived of Liberty
Participants: The Association of Indoigenous Village Leaders in Suriname (KAMPOS) Collaboration of Tribal Peoples
Indigenous Peoples Rights International
Topics: Rights of Indigenous Peoples
Participants: United Belize Advocacy Movement (UniBam)Tikun Olam
PETAL Promoting Empowerment through Awareness for Lesbian bi sexual women
State of Belize
Topics: Rights of ChildrenRights of Women
Participants: Bureau des Droits en Haïti (BDHH) - Biwo dwa mounState of Haiti
Participants: Maroon Indigenous Women’s CircleYamaye Council Of Indigenous Leaders
State of Jamaica
Topics: Rights of Indigenous Peoples
Participants: Bureau des Avocats InternationauxCenter for Gender & Refugee Studies
CUNY School of Law Human Rights and Gender Justice Clinic, Haitian Women's Collective
Institute for Justice & Democracy in Haiti
Komisyon Fanm Viktim Pou Viktim
MADRE
Nègès Mawon
Regional Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)
Réseau National de Défense des Droits Humains
State of Haiti
Topics: Rights of ChildrenRights of Women
Participants: Transnational Legal Clinic University of Pennsylvania Carey Law SchoolInternational Human Rights Clinic and Immigration Clinic University of Miami School of Law
Haitian Bridge Alliance
RFK Human Rights
Alternative Chance
Institute for Justice & Democracy in Haiti (IJDJ)
United States
Topics: Rights of Migrants and their Families
Participants: Afrikan Cultural and Educational AssociationAnbessa Foundation
Calcutta Cultural Group
Centre de Reflexion et de Recherche Sur a Migration Et L’environnement (Cerremen)
Freedom Imaginaries
Haiti Support Group (Guyana)
Haitian Bridge Alliance
Israelite Research Institute
Kay Fanm
Nation Of Rastafari
Nègès Mawon
Nou Pap Dòmi
Rastafari Initiative For Social And Economic Empowerment (Risee)
The International Decade For People Of African Descent Assembly
State of Haiti
Topics: Rights of Migrants and their Families
Participants: Service Jésuite aux Migrants-Haïti (SJM-Haïti)State of Haiti
Topics: Rights of Migrants and their Families
Participants: Caribbean Centre for Human Rights (CCHR)State of Trinidad and Tobago
Topics: Rights of Persons Deprived of LibertyRights of Migrants and their Families
Topics: Rule of Law, Independence of the JudiciaryAccess to Justice, Judicial Guarantees
Participants: State of Trinidad and TobagoInternational Human Rights Clinic Faculty of Law, University of the West Indies (UWI)
Topics: Rule of Law, Independence of the Judiciary
Participants: Bureau des Avocats InternationauxState of Haiti
Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti
Topics: Right to Freedom of ExpressionCitizen Security
Participants: Lof Campo Maripe, ArgentinaEnsemble des Citoyens Compétents à la Recherche l’Egalité des Droits de l’Homme (ECCREDH)
State of Haiti
Ligue Culturelle Haitienne Pour Les Droits Humains (LCHDH)
Samuel Daris
Samuel Saint Preux
Topics: General Human Rights Situation
Participants: State of Trinidad and TobagoFamily Planning Association of Trinidad and Tobago (FPATT)
International Human Rights Clinic Faculty of Law, University of the West Indies (UWI)
Topics: Rights of Migrants and their Families
Participants: Avocats sans frontières Canada (ASFC)State of Haiti
Kayfamn
L'Office de la protection du citoyen
Topics: Rights of Women
Participants: Avocats sans frontières Canada (ASFC)Collectif contre l’impunité
State of Haiti
Topics: Access to Justice, Judicial Guarantees
Participants: Ensemble des Citoyens Compétents à la Recherche l’Egalité des Droits de l’Homme (ECCREDH)State of Haiti
Topics: Human Rights Defenders
Participants: State of HaitiHaitian Cultural League For Human Rights (LCHDH
Topics: Rights of Children
Participants: ChildLinKState of Guyana
Guyana National Youth Council (GNYC)
Society Against Sexual Orientation Discrimination (SASOD)
Topics: Rights of WomenRights of Children
Rights of Afro-Descendents / Against Racial Discrimination
Economic, Social, Cultural and Environmental Rights
Rights of Persons LGBTI
Participants: Défenseur des OpprimésState of Haiti
Global Justice Clinic - New York University, School of Law
Kolektif Jistis Min
Lafontaine Orvild
Mouvement Démocratique Populaire
Observatoire Macro-Projets
Plate-forme des Organisations Haïtiennes des Droits Humains
Plate-forme Haïtienne de Plaidoyer pour un Développement Alternatif
Réseau National de Défense des Droits Humains (RNDDH)
Tèt Kole Ti Peyizan Ayisyen
Topics: Right to Freedom of Expression
Participants: Coalition Advocating Inclusion of Sexual OrientationState of Trinidad and Tobago
Women's Institute for Alternative Development (WINAD)
Topics: Labor and Workers' RightsEconomic, Social, Cultural and Environmental Rights
Participants: Clerical and Commercial Workers Union (CCWU)Deaf Association of Guyana (DAG)
State of Guyana
Guyana Equality Forum (GEF)
Guyanese Organization of Indigenous Peoples (GOIP)
Society Against Sexual Orientation Discrimination (SASOD)
Stella's Sisterhood of Service and Support Foundation (S4)
Topics: Rights of WomenRights of Indigenous Peoples
Economic, Social, Cultural and Environmental Rights
Rights of Persons LGBTI
Rights of Persons with Disabilities
Participants: Caribbean Institute for Human Rights (ICADH)State of Bahamas
Grand Bahama Human Rights Association (GBHRA)
Robert F. Kennedy, Center for Justice and Human Rights (RFK Center)
Topics: Rights of Migrants and their Families
Participants: Caribbean Vulnerable Communities Coalition (CVC)State of Jamaica
Families Against State Terrorism
Human Rights Law Clinic, George Washington University
Independent Jamaica Council for Human Rights
Jamaica Forum for Lesbians all-Sexuals and Gays (J-FLAG)
Jamaicans for Justice (JFJ)
Quality of Citizenship Jamaica (QCJ))
Topics: General Human Rights SituationRights of Persons LGBTI
Participants: Environmental Toxicology and HealthState of Suriname
Suriname Indigenous Health Fund (SIHF)
Topics: Rights of Indigenous Peoples
Participants: State of JamaicaCivil Society of the Americas
Topics: General Human Rights SituationRights of Persons LGBTI
Participants: Avocats sans frontières Canada (ASFC)Centre CEcuménique des Droits Humains (CEDH)
Collectif contre l’impunité
State of Haiti
Maison des femmes
Mouvement des femmes haïtiennes pour l´éducation et le développement (MOUFHED)
Réseau National de Défense des Droits Humains (RNDDH)
Topics: Access to Justice, Judicial Guarantees
Participants: Artistes In Direct Support (AIDS)Child Advocate
State of Guyana
Family Awareness Conscious Together (FACT)
Red Thread (RT)
Society Against Sexual Orientation Discrimination (SASOD)
Topics: Rights of ChildrenRights of Persons LGBTI
Participants: Citoyens Engagés pour le Respect et la Promotion Des Droits Humains (CERPRODH)State of Haiti
Organisation pour la Protection des Droits de L’enfance et de la Femme (OPDEF)
Topics: Rights of Children
Participants: State of HaitiFédération Internationale des Ligues des Droits de l'Homme (FIDH)
Rassemblements des Volontaires pour la Défense des Droits Humains (RAVODEDH)
Réseau National de Défense des Droits Humains (RNDDH)
Topics: Citizen Security
Participants: Bureau des Avocats InternationauxCenter for Constitutional Rights (CCR)
State of Haiti
FAFILEK
Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti
International Women's Human Rights Clinic at CUNY
KOFAVIV
MADRE
Women's Link Worldwide
Topics: Precautionary MeasuresForced Displacement
Participants: State of HaitiInternational Gay & Lesbian Human Rights Commission
Topics: Rights of Persons LGBTI
Participants: Bureau des Avocats InternationauxState of Haiti
Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti
International Human Rights Law Clinic, American University-Washington College of Law
Topics: General Human Rights Situation
Participants: Centre CEcuménique des Droits Humains (CEDH)Comité des Avocats pour le Respect des Libertés Individuelles (CARLI)
State of Haiti
Fédération Internationale des Ligues des Droits de l'Homme (FIDH)
Réseau National de Défense des Droits Humains (RNDDH)
Topics: General Human Rights Situation
Participants: State of JamaicaInternational Human Rights Law Clinic, American University-Washington College of Law
Topics: Petitions and CasesCitizen Security
Access to Justice, Judicial Guarantees
Participants: Bureau des Avocats InternationauxCenter for Human Rights and Global Justice of the New York University Law School
State of Haiti
Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti
Robert F. Kennedy, Center for Justice and Human Rights (RFK Center)
Topics: Economic, Social, Cultural and Environmental Rights
Participants: State of JamaicaJamaicans for Justice (JFJ)
Topics: Rights of Persons Deprived of LibertyRights of Children
Participants: Action Citoyenne pour le Respect des Droits Humains (ACREDH)State of Haiti
Topics: General Human Rights Situation
Participants: State of BelizeUniversity of Arizona College of Law
Topics: Rights of Indigenous PeoplesPetitions and Cases
Participants: State of HaitiRegroupement des Citoyens pour la Protection des Droits Humains (RECIPRODH)
Topics: Rights of WomenRights of Children
Participants: Jamaicans for Justice (JFJ)
Topics: Rights of Persons Deprived of LibertyRights of Children
Participants: State of JamaicaInternational Human Rights Law Clinic, American University-Washington College of Law
Topics: Petitions and Cases
Participants: Colectivo de Notables de Cité Soleil (CONOCS)
Participants: State of Trinidad and TobagoSimons Muirhead and Burton
Topics: Petitions and CasesPrecautionary Measures
Participants: Comité de Abogados por el Respeto a las Libertades Individuales (CARLI)
Topics: General Human Rights Situation
Participants: Bureau des Avocats InternationauxInstitute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti
University of Harvard - Law School
Topics: General Human Rights Situation
Participants: Comité des Avocats pour le Respect des Libertés Individuelles (CARLI)
Topics: General Human Rights Situation
Participants: David PadillaState of Suriname
Fergus McKay
Topics: Rights of Afro-Descendents / Against Racial DiscriminationPetitions and Cases
Participants: Jamaicans for Justice (JFJ)
Topics: General Human Rights Situation
Participants: State of JamaicaJamaicans for Justice (JFJ)
Topics: Petitions and Cases
Participants: State of HaitiFédération des Barreaux d'Haiti
Rigaud Duplan
Topics: General Human Rights Situation
Participants: Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ)State of Haiti
Topics: Right to Freedom of Expression
Participants: State of HaitiRigaud Duplan
Topics: Precautionary Measures
Participants: David PadillaFergus McKay
Topics: Rights of Afro-Descendents / Against Racial DiscriminationPetitions and Cases
Participants: State of Barbados
Topics: General Human Rights Situation
Participants: Simons Muirhead and Burton
Participants: Inter-American Commission on Human Rights
Topics: General Human Rights Situation
Participants: Ashurst Morris Crisp SolicitorsState of Jamaica
Topics: Petitions and Cases
Participants: State of BarbadosSimons Muirhead and Burton
Topics: General Human Rights Situation
Participants: State of BelizeSimons Muirhead and Burton
Topics: General Human Rights Situation
Participants: Convergencia DemocráticaJosé Nicholas
Paul Denis
Víctor Benoit
Topics: General Human Rights Situation
Participants: Amnesty InternationalSusan Lee
Topics: General Human Rights Situation
Participants: Kamau CushMovement for Economic Empowerment
Topics: General Human Rights Situation
Participants: Center for Justice and International Law (CEJIL)State of Bahamas
Topics: Petitions and Cases
Participants: State of BelizeIndian Law Resource Center
Topics: Rights of Indigenous PeoplesPetitions and Cases
Participants: Simons Muirhead and Burton
Topics: Petitions and Cases
Participants: Barlow, Lyde and Gilbert
Topics: Petitions and Cases
Participants: Barlow, Lyde and GilbertCameron McKenna
Topics: Petitions and Cases
Participants: Mischon De Reya
Topics: Petitions and Cases
Participants: State of HaitiLawyer's Committee for Human Rights
Topics: Petitions and CasesHuman Rights Defenders
Participants: Connie Walker
Topics: General Human Rights Situation
Participants: Chenet Jean-BaptistePlataforma Interamericana de Derechos Humanos, Democracia y Desarrollo (PIDHDD)
Topics: General Human Rights Situation
Participants: Embajador Colin Granderson
Topics: General Human Rights Situation
Participants: James Oury
Topics: Petitions and Cases
Participants: Joanne CrossSlaughter & May
Topics: Petitions and Cases
Topics: General Human Rights Situation