STATUTE OF THE Approved by Resolution
N1 447 taken by the
General I. NATURE AND PURPOSES Article 1
1.
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights is an organ of the
Organization of the American States, created to promote the observance and
defense of human rights and to serve as consultative organ of the
Organization in this matter.
2.
For the purposes of the present Statute, human rights are
understood to be:
a.
The rights set forth in the American Convention on Human Rights, in
relation to the States Parties thereto;
b.
The rights set forth in the American Declaration of the Rights and
Duties of Man, in relation to the other member states. II. MEMBERSHIP AND
STRUCTURE Article
2
1.
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights shall be composed of
seven members, who shall be persons of high moral character and recognized
competence in the field of human rights.
2.
The Commission shall represent all the member states of the
Organization. Article 3
1.
The members of the Commission shall be elected in a personal
capacity by the General Assembly of the Organization from a list of
candidates proposed by the governments of the member states.
2.
Each government may propose up to three candidates, who may be
nationals of the state proposing them or of any other member state of the
Organization. When a slate of
three is proposed, at least one of the candidates shall be a national of a
state other then the proposing state. Article 4
1.
At least six months prior to completion of the terms of office for
which the members of the Commission were elected,[1] the Secretary
General shall request, in writing, each member state of the Organization
to present its candidates within 90 days.
2.
The Secretary General shall prepare a list in alphabetical order of
the candidates nominated, and shall transmit it to the member states of
the Organization at least thirty days prior to the next General
Assembly. Article 5
The members of the Commission shall be elected by secret ballot of
the General Assembly from the list of candidates referred to in Article
4(2). The candidates who
obtain the largest number of votes and an absolute majority of the votes
of the member states shall be declared elected. Should it become necessary to hold
several ballots to elect all the members of the Commission, the candidates
who receive the smallest number of votes shall be eliminated successively,
in the manner determined by the General Assembly. Article 6
The members of the Commission shall be elected for a term of four
years and may be reelected only once. Their terms of office shall begin
on January 1 of the year following the year in which they are
elected. Article 7
No two nationals of the same state may be members of the
Commission. Article 8
1.
Membership on the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights is
incompatible with engaging in other functions that might affect the
independence or impartiality of the member or the dignity or prestige of
his post on the Commission.
2.
The Commission shall consider any case that may arise regarding
incompatibility in accordance with the provisions of the first paragraph
of this Article, and in accordance with the procedures provided by its
Regulations.
If the Commission decides, by an affirmative vote of a least five
of its members, that a case of incompatibility exists, it will submit the
case, with its background, to the General Assembly for
decision.
3.
A declaration of incompatibility by the General Assembly shall be
adopted by a majority of two thirds of the member states of the
Organization and shall occasion the immediate removal of the member of the
Commission from his post, but it shall not invalidate any action in which
he may have participated. Article 9
The duties of the members of the Commission are:
1.
Except when justifiably prevented, to attend the regular and
special meetings the Commission holds at its permanent headquarters or in
any other place to which it may have decided to move
temporarily.
2.
To serve, except when justifiably prevented, on the special
committees which the Commission may form to conduct on-site observations,
or to perform any other duties within their ambit.
3.
To maintain absolute secrecy about all matters which the Commission
deems confidential.
4.
To conduct themselves in their public and private life as befits
the high moral authority of the office and the importance of the mission
entrusted to the Commission. Article
10
1.
If a member commits a serious violation of any of the duties
referred to in Article 9, the Commission, on the affirmative vote of five
of its members, shall submit the case to the General Assembly of the
Organization, which shall decide whether he should be removed from
office.
2.
The Commission shall hear the member in question before taking its
decision. Article 11
1.
When a vacancy occurs for reasons other than the normal completion
of a member's term of office, the Chairman of the Commission shall
immediately notify the Secretary General of the Organization, who shall in
turn inform the member states of the Organization.
2.
In order to fill vacancies, each government may propose a candidate
within a period of 30 days from the date of receipt of the Secretary
General's communication that a vacancy has occurred.
3.
The Secretary General shall prepare an alphabetical list of the
candidates and shall transmit it to the Permanent Council of the
Organization, which shall fill the vacancy.
4.
When the term of office is due to expire within six months
following the date on which a vacancy occurs, the vacancy shall not be
filled. Article
12
1.
In those member states of the Organization that are Parties to the
American Convention on Human Rights, the members of the Commission shall
enjoy, from the time of their election and throughout their term of
office, such immunities as are granted to diplomatic agents under
international law. While in
office, they shall also enjoy the diplomatic privileges required for the
performance of their duties.
2.
In those member states of the Organization that are not Parties to
the American Convention on Human Rights, the members of the Commission
shall enjoy the privileges and immunities pertaining to their posts that
are required for them to perform their duties with
independence.
3.
The system of privileges and immunities of the members of the
Commission may be regulated or supplemented by multilateral or bilateral
agreements between the Organization and the member states. Article 13
The members of the Commission shall receive travel allowances and
per diem and fees, as appropriate, for their participation in the meetings
of the Commission or in other functions which the Commission, in
accordance with its Regulations, entrusts to them, individually or
collectively. Such travel and
per diem allowances and fees shall be included in the budget of the
Organization, and their amounts and conditions shall be determined by the
General Assembly. Article 14
1.
The Commission shall have a Chairman, a First Vice-Chairman and a
Second Vice‑Chairman, who shall be elected by an absolute majority of its
members for a period of one year; they may be re-elected only once in each
four-year period.
2.
The Chairman and the two Vice-Chairmen shall be the officers of the
Commission, and their functions shall be set forth in the
Regulations. Article 15
The Chairman of the Commission may go to the Commission's headquarters and remain there for such time as may be necessary for the performance of his duties. III. HEADQUARTERS AND
MEETINGS Article
16
1.
The headquarters of the Commission shall be in Washington,
D.C.
2.
The Commission may move to and meet in the territory of any
American State when it so decides by an absolute majority of votes, and
with the consent, or at the invitation of the government
concerned.
3.
The Commission shall meet in regular and special sessions, in
conformity with the provisions of the Regulations. Article
17
1.
An absolute majority of the members of the Commission shall
constitute a quorum.
2.
In regard to those States that are Parties to the Convention,
decisions shall be taken by an absolute majority vote of the members of
the Commission in those cases established by the American Convention on
Human Rights and the present Statute. In other cases, an absolute
majority of the members present shall be required.
3.
In regard to those States that are not Parties to the Convention,
decisions shall be taken by an absolute majority vote of the members of
the Commission, except in matters of procedure, in which case, the
decisions shall be taken by simple majority. IV. FUNCTIONS AND POWERS Article
18
The Commission shall have the following powers with respect to the
member states of the Organization of American States:
a.
to develop an awareness of human rights among the peoples of the
Americas; b. to
make recommendations to the governments of the states on the adoption of
progressive measures in favor of human rights in the framework of their
legislation, constitutional provisions and international commitments, as
well as appropriate measures to further observance of those
rights; c. to
prepare such studies or reports as it considers advisable for the
performance of its duties;
d.
to request that the governments of the states provide it with
reports on measures they adopt in matters of human rights; e. to
respond to inquiries made by any member state through the General
Secretariat of the Organization on matters related to human rights in the
state and, within its possibilities, to provide those states with the
advisory services they request; f. to
submit an annual report to the General Assembly of the Organization, in
which due account shall be taken of the legal regime applicable to those
States Parties to the American Convention on Human Rights and of that
system applicable to those that are not Parties; g. to
conduct on-site observations in a state, with the consent or at the
invitation of the government in question; and h. to
submit the program-budget of the Commission to the Secretary General, so
that he may present it to the General Assembly. Article 19
With respect to the States Parties to the American Convention on
Human Rights, the Commission shall discharge its duties in conformity with
the powers granted under the Convention and in the present Statute, and
shall have the following powers in addition to those designated in Article
18: a. to
act on petitions and other communications, pursuant to the provisions of
Articles 44 to 51 of the Convention; b. to
appear before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in cases provided
for in the Convention; c. to
request the Inter-American Court of Human Rights to take such provisional
measures as it considers appropriate in serious and urgent cases which
have not yet been submitted to it for consideration, whenever this becomes
necessary to prevent irreparable injury to persons; d. to
consult the Court on the interpretation of the American Convention on
Human Rights or of other treaties concerning the protection of human
rights in the American states; e. to
submit additional draft protocols to the American Convention on Human
Rights to the General Assembly, in order to progressively include other
rights and freedoms under the system of protection of the Convention,
and f. to submit
to the General Assembly, through the Secretary General, proposed
amendments to the American Convention on Human Rights, for such action as
the General Assembly deems appropriate. Article 20
In relation to those member states of the Organization that are not
parties to the American Convention on Human Rights, the Commission shall
have the following powers, in addition to those designated in Article
18: a. to
pay particular attention to the observance of the human rights referred to
in Articles I, II, III, IV, XVIII, XXV, and XXVI of the American
Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man; b. to
examine communications submitted to it and any other available
information, to address the government of any member state not a Party to
the Convention for information deemed pertinent by this Commission, and to
make recommendations to it, when it finds this appropriate, in order to
bring about more effective observance of fundamental human rights;
and, c. to
verify, as a prior condition to the exercise of the powers granted under
subparagraph b. above, whether the domestic legal procedures and remedies
of each member state not a Party to the Convention have been duly applied
and exhausted. V. SECRETARIAT
Article
21
1.
The Secretariat services of the Commission shall be provided by a
specialized administrative unit under the direction of an Executive
Secretary. This unit shall be
provided with the resources and staff required to accomplish the tasks the
Commission may assign to it.
2.
The Executive Secretary, who shall be a person of high moral
character and recognized competence in the field of human rights, shall be
responsible for the work of the Secretariat and shall assist the
Commission in the performance of its duties in accordance with the
Regulations.
3.
The Executive Secretary shall be appointed by the Secretary General
of the Organization, in consultation with the Commission. Furthermore, for the Secretary
General to be able to remove the Executive Secretary, he shall consult
with the Commission and inform its members of the reasons for his
decision. VI. STATUTE AND
REGULATIONS Article
22
1.
The present Statute may be amended by the General
Assembly.
2.
The Commission shall prepare and adopt its own Regulations, in
accordance with the present Statute. Article 23
1.
In accordance with the provisions of Articles 44 to 51 of the
American Convention on Human Rights, the Regulations of the Commission
shall determine the procedure to be followed in cases of petitions or
communications alleging violation of any of the rights guaranteed by the
Convention, and imputing such violation to any State Party to the
Convention.
2.
If the friendly settlement referred to in Articles 44-51 of the
Convention is not reached, the Commission shall draft, within 180 days,
the report required by Article 50 of the Convention. Article 24
1.
The Regulations shall establish the procedure to be followed in
cases of communications containing accusations or complaints of violations
of human rights imputable to States that are not Parties to the American
Convention on Human Rights.
2.
The Regulations shall contain, for this purpose, the pertinent
rules established in the Statute of the Commission approved by the Council
of the Organization in resolutions adopted on May 25 and June 8, 1960,
with the modifications and amendments introduced by Resolution XXII of the
Second Special Inter-American Conference, and by the Council of the
Organization at its meeting held on April 24, 1968, taking into account
resolutions CP/RES. 253 (343/78), "Transition from the present
Inter-American Commission on Human Rights to the Commission provided for
in the American Convention on Human Rights," adopted by the Permanent
Council of the Organization on September 20, 1979. VII. TRANSITORY PROVISIONS Article
25
Until the Commission adopts its new Regulations, the current
Regulations (OEA/Ser.L/VII. 17, doc. 26) shall apply to all the member
states of the Organization. Article
26
1.
The present Statute shall enter into effect 30 days after its
approval by the General Assembly. 2. The Secretary General shall order immediate publication of the Statute, and shall give it the widest possible distribution. |