IACHR
Press Release
IACHR Announces Observation Mission to Ecuador in Response to Protests
October 17, 2019
Washington, D.C. - The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) will conduct a working visit to Ecuador from October 28 to 30, 2019, at the invitation of the state, in order to observe the human rights situation in the country on the ground, specifically in connection with the current social protests and acts of violence going on there. It also wishes to find out more about how the state has been responding since the start of the month and how the dialogue process is proceeding.
The delegation will be led by the president of the IACHR and rapporteur for Ecuador, Commissioner Esmeralda Arosemena de Troitiño, and will also include commissioners Luis Ernesto Vargas, Antonia Urrejola, and the executive secretary of the IACHR, Paulo Abrão. The special rapporteurs for freedom of expression and economic, cultural and environmental rights will also take part in the visit, along with other members of the technical support team. The IACHR has noted the decision made by Ecuador’s Constitutional Court (CC), which ruled that the current state of emergency was constitutional but reduced its validity to a 30-day period that will end on November 3.
The IACHR acknowledges and is grateful for the invitation it received from the state of Ecuador to carry out this mission through a letter dated October 15, 2019. During the visit, the IACHR will hold meetings with state authorities, representatives of civil society, and other important stakeholders to be able to assess the situation, document the facts, and gather information in accordance with article 41 of the American Convention on Human Rights. The agenda for the visit will include activities in Quito and other cities in the country where demonstrations have taken place.
The IACHR also wishes to recall that the activities planned as part of the III Inter-American System of Human Rights Forum are scheduled to take place on November 6 and 7, and that the IACHR’s 174th Period of Sessions will be held from November 8 to 14, in Quito.
A principal, autonomous body of the Organization of American States (OAS), the IACHR derives its mandate from the OAS Charter and the American Convention on Human Rights. The Inter-American Commission has a mandate to promote respect for and to defend human rights in the region and acts as a consultative body to the OAS in this area. The Commission is composed of seven independent members who are elected in an individual capacity by the OAS General Assembly and who do not represent their countries of origin or residence.
No. 262/19