2022

Virtual, March 29, 2022

Expert table on good practices in the negotiation and implementation of friendly settlement agreements

On March 29, 2022, a virtual expert table was held on good practices in the negotiation and implementation of friendly settlement agreements aimed at public officials of the Guatemalan State in charge of the negotiation and / or execution of friendly settlement agreements. Experts from Argentina, Colombia and Mexico participated in the event, a space in which they shared good practices that have allowed overcoming the challenges that traditionally arise in the negotiation and implementation phases of friendly settlements, to contribute to the construction of capacities of the State of Guatemala for that same purpose.

In that sense, the inter-State dialogue table on friendly settlements was an opportunity to promote the exchange of experiences among States for the promotion of more agile friendly settlement processes with higher levels of compliance. Some of the topics addressed at the meeting were:

  • Legislative mechanisms and administrative structures for the negotiation and enforcement of friendly settlement agreements in Colombia.
  • Formulas of articulation between the national State and the provinces, and between the state institutions in charge of the representation of the State and of the negotiation and implementation of friendly settlement agreements in Argentina.
  • Model of Comprehensive Care for Victims, Trust of reparations and formulas of articulation of national State and federal states, and between the institutions of the State in charge of the negotiations and implementation of friendly settlement agreements in Mexico.

The first panel was attended by the Deputy Executive Secretary for the Petitions and Cases Area of the IACHR, Marisol Blanchard, who installed the event. Also participating in the debate were the International Defense Advisor of the National Agency for Legal Defense of the Colombian State, Adriana Jazmin Peña; the director of International Litigation Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Argentina, Javier Salgado and the Case Advisor of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Mexico, José Castillo. The authorities of the Presidential Commission for Peace and Human Rights -COPADEH, the entity in charge of the inter-institutional articulation for the negotiation and implementation of friendly solutions were present at the event and actively participated in each panel generating a collaborative interstate dialogue focused on the lessons learned in the use of the mechanism.

The discussion allowed the States to share good practices in terms of institutionality or domestic structures that speed up the negotiation and implementation of friendly settlement agreements and identify the progress and challenges they present. The Commission hopes in the future to maintain similar spaces for dialogue between States and civil society organizations.



2021

Guatemala, May 13, 2021

VII Virtual training workshop for officials on procedural aspects of the friendly settlement mechanism

On May 13, 2021, within the framework of the COVID-19 health emergency, a virtual training workshop was held for Guatemalan state officials on the theoretical and practical aspects of the friendly settlement mechanism. The event was attended by more than 30 officials from the different institutions responsible for the negotiation and execution of friendly settlement agreements in Guatemala and the special participation of the Honorable Ambassador Rita Claverie de Sciolli Representative of the Permanent Mission of Guatemala to the OAS, who shared a few words during the installation of the workshop.

In this training, theoretical-practical procedural elements of the friendly settlement mechanism were incorporated in the light of the regulatory framework that regulates it, including technical tools for negotiation and casuistic application of the information provided. Some of the topics of the training were:

  • Adversarial and non-adversarial conflict resolution systems
  • Nature and characteristics of the friendly settlement mechanism
  • Creation and evolution of the friendly settlement mechanism
  • The Role of the IACHR in the Friendly Settlement Process
  • Legal framework
  • Start of the friendly settlement
  • Closure of the friendly settlement
  • Type-approval reports: requirements and effects
  • Monitoring compliance with friendly settlement agreements
  • Challenges in the implementation of the agreements
  • The role of state institutions in friendly settlements and the importance of inter-institutional coordination
  • Progress in promoting the friendly settlement procedure
  • Guatemala facing the friendly settlement procedure



2019

Ecuador, November 8, 2019

Training Workshop for Civil Society of Ecuador on the Friendly Settlement Process and Dialogue Table between the Ecuadorian State and Civil Society on the Future of the Mechanism

On November 8, 2019, a training workshop for civil society on theoretical and practical aspects of the friendly settlement mechanism was held. Various organizations which are petitioners of different cases of Ecuador before the IACHR were invited. This workshop included theoretical and practical procedural elements of the friendly settlement mechanism in the light of the normative framework that regulates it, including negotiation techniques and case-by-case application of the information provided. In addition, the training included a dialogue table between the Ecuadorian State and the civil society on the challenges and measures that must be adopted for the creation of an institutional model on friendly settlements in Ecuador. Some of the topics of the workshop were:

  • Adversarial and non-adversarial dispute resolution systems
  • Nature and characteristics of the friendly settlement mechanism
  • Creation and development of the friendly settlement mechanism
  • The role of the Commission in the friendly settlement process
  • Legal framework
  • Beginning of the friendly settlement
  • Closing the friendly settlement
  • Approval Reports: requirements and effects
  • monitoring compliance with friendly settlement agreements
  • Challenges in implementing agreements
  • The role of state institutions in the friendly solutions and the importance of inter-agency coordination
  • Practical tools for multi part negotiation
  • Pilot Project for the Expansion of the Friendly Settlement Procedure

Ecuador, November 7, 2019

Training workshop for State Officials in Ecuador

On November 7, 2019, a training workshop for State Officials of Ecuador was held. The workshop included information on the procedural and practical aspects of the friendly settlement mechanism. Agents of different public institutions in charge of the negotiation and the implementation of the friendly settlement agreements in Ecuador attended to this workshop. The said training included theoretical and practical procedural elements of the mechanism of friendly solutions in light of its regulatory framework, including technical negotiation tools and case application of the information provided. Some of the training topics were:

  • Adversarial and non-adversarial dispute resolution systems
  • Nature and characteristics of the friendly settlement mechanism
  • Creation and development of the friendly settlement mechanism
  • The role of the Commission in the friendly settlement process
  • Legal framework
  • Beginning of the friendly settlement
  • Closing the friendly settlement
  • Approval Reports: requirements and effects
  • monitoring compliance with friendly settlement agreements
  • Challenges in implementing agreements
  • The role of state institutions in the friendly solutions and the importance of inter-agency coordination
  • Practical tools for multi part negotiation
  • Pilot Project for the Expansion of the Friendly Settlement Procedure

Ecuador, November 6, 2019

Inter-State Dialogue Table on Good Practices for Negotiating and Implementing Friendly Settlements

On November 6, 2019, a roundtable was held between States on good practices for negotiating and implementing friendly solutions in order to provide a space for dialogue for the identification of good practices in the negotiation and implementation of friendly settlement agreements and to promote the optimization and expansion of the use of friendly settlement mechanisms before the IACHR.

During the first panel of the dialogue table the Executive Secretary of the IACHR, Paulo Abrao, installed the table; then the First vice Chair of the IACHR Joel Hernández, discussed the prioritization of the friendly settlement mechanism, followed by the Ex-President of the IACHR, Carlos Ayala, who made a presentation on the evolution of the friendly settlement mechanism. Finally, the Ambassador of Mexico in Ecuador, Raquel Serur Smeke, discussed the model of Integral Care of Victims, the National Trust for Reparations and the various forms of articulation of the National and Federal State, as well as practices that streamline the negotiation and implementation of friendly settlement of the Mexican state.

In the second panel, the Legal Director of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Costa Rica, Natalia Córdoba, discussed the advances in Costa Rica regarding friendly settlements observed and the practices in the use of the mechanism while sharing the experiences of the Costa Rican State in state articulation for the implementation of measures related to housing. On the other hand, the Honduran Ambassador to Ecuador, Humberto Lopez Villamil, gave a presentation on Honduras' advances in friendly settlements with emphasis current cases that are under negotiation process. I the same sense, the Director General of Human Rights of the Paraguay Foreign Ministry, Ambassador Marcelo Scappini, discussed Paraguay's advances in friendly settlements, with emphasis on indigenous issues, and existing mechanisms for implementing the decisions of the Inter-American System of Human Rights, through the articulation of the various Paraguayan state entities in charge of the reparation measures. Finally, the closing words of the event were in charge of the Attorney General of the State of Ecuador, Iñigo Salvador Crespo.

The conversation allowed the states to share the best practices in institutional matters and domestic structures that expedite the negotiation and implementation of friendly settlement agreements and to identify the advances and challenges that they present. The Commission hopes to maintain similar spaces in the future for dialogue between states and civil society organizations.



2017

United States, December 5, 2017

2nd Special Meeting on Implementation of Friendly Settlement Agreements and Recommendations of the IACHR

On December 5, 2017, the 2nd Specialized Meeting on Implementation of Friendly Settlement Agreements and Recommendations of the IACHR was held, with the objective of exchanging ideas among different actors and from different angles on the challenges and difficulties in the implementation of the decisions and friendly solutions of the organs of the Inter-American Human Rights System. This event was organized in a wide and public format of discussion among the States, petitioners, academics and experts in alternative conflict resolution, for the identification of good practices and challenges in the negotiation and implementation of friendly settlement agreements and agreements for the compliance with the recommendations issued by the IACHR in Merits Reports in order to promote its effective compliance.

This specialized meeting is the second of two events of this nature organized by the IACHR, and had 5 panels. The first panel was "The mechanisms for supervising compliance with decisions of the Inter-American Commission and judgments of the Inter-American Court. A look at how the organs carry out the supervision of their decisions ", with the participation of the panelists Patricio Pazmiño Freire, Vice President of the IDH Court and Francisco José Eguiguren Praeli, Commissioner President of the IACHR and was moderated by Mariela Morales, Representative of the Max Institute Planck of Comparative Public Law and International Law.

The second panel was "The perspective of the representatives of the victims in the implementation of decisions of the organs. Problems, challenges and recommendations for the organs ", with the participation of the panelists Alejandra Gonza, Director of the International Law Clinic of the Faculty of Law of the University of Washington and Marcia Aguiluz, Lawyer of the Center for Justice and International Law CEJIL, and was moderated by Diego Rodríguez Pinzón, Professor at the American University Washington College of Law and Co-Director of the Academy of Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law.

The third panel was "The perspective of the States in the implementation of the decisions of the organs. Problems, challenges and recommendations for the organs ", with the participation of the panelists Amb. Margarita Manjarrez, Coordinator of Follow-up of International Recommendations on Human Rights of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Colombia and Farah Diva Urrutia, Director General of Legal Affairs and Treaties of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Panama, with the moderation of Magdalena Cervantes, Observatory of the Inter-American System of Human Rights, Institute of Legal Research of the UNAM.

Finally, panels 4 and 5 were about "Friendly solutions before the organs of the system. Mechanisms and Challenges for the implementation of friendly settlement agreements " and "The role of national human rights institutions and official public defenders in the implementation of the decisions of the organs of the system. How national institutions could be better used in the implementation of decisions and friendly solutions of the organs of the system ". These panels had the participation of the panelists Uriel Salas, Case Director of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Mexico; Monserrat Solano Carboni, Advocate of the Inhabitants of the Republic of Costa Rica; Constanza de la Fuente Montt, Regional Head of the National Human Rights Institute of Chile and Aníbal Pérez-Liñán, Professor of Political Science at the University of Pittsburgh, and with the moderation of Maria Claudia Pulido , Deputy Executive Secretary of the IACHR.

United States, September 21, 2017

1st Special Meeting on the Implementation of Friendly Settlement Agreements and Recommendations of the IACHR

On September 21, 2017, the 1st Special Meeting on the Implementation of Friendly Settlement Agreements and Recommendations of the IACHR was held, with the objective of providing a space for dialogue between States, petitioners, academics and experts in alternative conflict resolution, for the identification of good practices and challenges in the negotiation and implementation of friendly settlement agreements and agreements to comply with the recommendations issued by the IACHR in Merits Reports in order to promote their effective compliance.

This specialized meeting is one of two events of this nature organized by the IACHR, and included the participation of experts of the academic and alternative dispute resolution fields. In that sense, the meeting was attended by the Adjunct Executive Secretary of the IACHR, Maria Claudia Pulido, who gave a presentation on the mechanisms before the IACHR for the follow-up of friendly settlement agreements and recommendations issued by the IACHR in merits reports. Fabián Sanchez, Executive Director of the Laboratory of Structural Litigation, also participated with a presentation on the recommendations of the IACHR and the proposals for encouraging compliance with recommendations and friendly settlement agreements. Also, Viviana Krsticevic, Executive Director of the Center for Justice and International Law CEJIL, made a presentation on the challenges and proposals for the implementation of individual and structural reparation measures with an emphasis on human rights violations related to issues of gender and on the challenges and proposals for the implementation of measures related to investigation and justice.

On the other hand, Professor Claudia Martin, Co-Director of the Academy of Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law, American University, Washington College of Law, gave a presentation on the challenges and proposals for the implementation of measures of immediate and successive execution regarding individual reparations. Finally, Sylvia Aguilera, Executive Director of the Civic Collaboration Center, participated with a presentation on the challenges and proposals for the negotiation and implementation of friendly settlement agreements and recommendations.

The Commission hopes to hold a similar meeting soon with petitioners and States to promote the dialogue on compliance of friendly settlement agreements and recommendations of the IACHR

Argentina, May 19, 2017

Fifth National Seminar on the Friendly Settlement Mechanism

On May 19, the IACHR held the Fifth National Seminar on the Friendly Settlement Mechanism, which aimed to promote the use of friendly settlements as an alternative to litigation in the inter-American human rights system. This opportunity for dialogue allowed civil society representatives and Argentine government officials to learn about the impact of friendly settlement agreements approved by the IACHR, identify good practices, and understand the challenges that must be overcome to use this mechanism effectively and protect the rights of victims. Previous seminars on the friendly settlement mechanism were held in Mexico, Paraguay, Bolivia, and Colombia, and an inter-American conference on this subject was held in Antigua, Guatemala.

Speakers at the opening of the Fifth Seminar included the President of the IACHR, Commissioner Francisco Eguiguren; the National Secretary of Human Rights, Claudio Avruj; the National Public Defender, Stella Maris Martínez; and the Human Rights Secretary for the Province of Buenos Aires, Santiago Canton. The coordinator of the IACHR Executive Secretariat’s Section on Friendly Settlements and Follow-Up, María Claudia Pulido, gave a presentation on the friendly settlement procedure at the IACHR. This was followed by a panel discussion in which participants shared international experiences with friendly settlement proceedings and discussed the scope of this mechanism and the challenges involved. Participants on the panel included Angela Ramírez, adviser to the director of the National Legal Defense Agency of the State of Colombia; Carla Juárez, an official of the Embassy of Mexico in Argentina; and Beatriz Contreras, of the Chilean Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Office of Human Rights, as well as moderator Mario Coriolano, head of the Public Defender’s Office for Cassation of the Province of Buenos Aires and member of the Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture of the United Nations Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture (OPCAT). The panel discussion on the Argentina experience with the friendly settlement process for petitions and cases before the IACHR included one section in which the State’s perspective was presented and another that offered the perspective of petitioning parties. The presenters representing the State were Javier Salgado, director of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Office on International Litigation, and Ramiro Badía, case coordinator at the Ministry of Justice’s Subsecretariat for Human Rights. Presenters on the side of petitioners included Gabriela Kletzel, of the Centro de Estudios Legales y Sociales (CELS); Gustavo Iglesias, of the National Public Defender’s Office; Sandra Chávez, a beneficiary of a friendly settlement; and Ana María Herrán, of the Comisión de familiares de víctimas indefensas de la Violencia Social-Policial-Judicial-Institucional (COFAVI), as well as moderator Liliana Tojo, director of CEJIL South. For her part, Sylvia Aguilera, of the Mexican organization Centro de Colaboración Cívica, made a presentation on tools to facilitate a friendly settlement. The final discussion, which included the participation of everyone who attended, looked at ways to increase the use of the friendly settlement mechanism in Argentina and examined lessons learned from the past and suggestions for the future.

Paraguay, May 19, 2017

Training Workshop for State Officials in Paraguay

On May 19, 2017, a training workshop for State Officials was held. The workshop included information on the procedural and practical aspects of the friendly settlement mechanism. Agents of different public institutions in charge of the negotiation and the implementation of the friendly settlement agreements in Paraguay attended to this workshop. The said training included theoretical and practical procedural elements of the mechanism of friendly solutions in light of its regulatory framework, including technical negotiation tools and case application of the information provided, and a practical simulation activity to reach a friendly settlement. Some of the training topics were:

  • Adversarial and non-adversarial dispute resolution systems
  • Nature and characteristics of the friendly settlement mechanism
  • Creation and development of the friendly settlement mechanism
  • The role of the Commission in the friendly settlement process
  • Legal framework
  • Beginning of the friendly settlement
  • Closing the friendly settlement
  • Approval Reports: requirements and effects
  • monitoring compliance with friendly settlement agreements
  • Challenges in implementing agreements
  • The role of state institutions in the friendly solutions and the importance of inter-agency coordination
  • Practical tools for multi part negotiation
  • Practical excercise/ simulation of a negotiation

Paraguay, May 18, 2017

Training Workshop for Civil Society in Paraguay

On May 18, 2017, a training workshop for civil society was held. The workshop included information on the procedural and practical aspects of the friendly settlement mechanism. Members of various human rights organizations and petitioners before the IACHR attended to this event. The said training included theoretical and practical procedural elements of the mechanism of friendly solutions in light of its regulatory framework, including technical negotiation tools and case application of the information provided, and a practical simulation activity to reach a friendly settlement. Some of the training topics were:

  • Adversarial and non-adversarial dispute resolution systems
  • Nature and characteristics of the friendly settlement mechanism
  • Creation and development of the friendly settlement mechanism
  • The role of the Commission in the friendly settlement process
  • Legal framework
  • Beginning of the friendly settlement
  • Closing the friendly settlement
  • Approval Reports: requirements and effects
  • monitoring compliance with friendly settlement agreements
  • Challenges in implementing agreements
  • The role of petitioners in the implementation of the friendly settlement agreements
  • Practical tools for multi part negotiation
  • Practical excercise/ simulation of a negotiation



2016

Panama, December 1, 2016

Taller de capacitación de funcionarios en Panamá

El día 1 de diciembre de 2016, se llevó a cabo un taller de capacitación de funcionarios sobre los aspectos prácticos y procedimentales para el uso del mecanismo de soluciones amistosas, al cual se convocaron a las distintas instituciones encargadas de la negociación y ejecución de los acuerdos de solución amistosa en Panamá. Entre las instituciones participantes se encuentran la Procuraduría General de la Nación, Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores, Ministerio del Medio Ambiente, Ministerio de Salud, Autoridad Nacional de Administración de Tierras, Cancillería de Panama, Policía Nacional y de la Procuraduría General de Administración. En este Taller, organizado con el apoyo de la Cancillería Panameña, se incorporaron elementos procedimentales teóricos y prácticos del mecanismo de soluciones amistosas a la luz del marco normativo que lo regula, incluyendo herramientas técnicas de negociación integradora, que deben adelantarse para llegar a una solución amistosa. Algunos de los temas del entrenamiento fueron:

  • Sistemas adversariales y no adversariales de resolución de conflictos
  • Naturaleza y características del mecanismo de solución amistosa
  • Creación y evolución del mecanismo de soluciones amistosas
  • El rol de la CIDH en el proceso de solución amistosa
  • Marco jurídico
  • Inicio de la solución amistosa
  • Cierre de la solución amistosa
  • Informes de homologación: requisitos y efectos
  • Seguimiento del cumplimiento de los acuerdos de solución amistosa
  • Retos en la implementación de los acuerdos
  • El rol de las instituciones estatales en las soluciones amistosas y la coordinación interinstitucional
  • Herramientas prácticas para la negociación multi parte

Paraguay, August 17, 2016

Training Workshop for State Officials in Paraguay

On August 17, 2016, a training workshop for State Officials was held. The workshop included information on the procedural and practical aspects of the friendly settlement mechanism. Agents of different public institutions in charge of the negotiation and the implementation of the friendly settlement agreements in Paraguay attended to this workshop. The said training included theoretical and practical procedural elements of the mechanism of friendly solutions in light of its regulatory framework, including technical negotiation tools and case application of the information provided, and a practical simulation activity to reach a friendly settlement. Some of the training topics were:

  • Adversarial and non-adversarial dispute resolution systems
  • Nature and characteristics of the friendly settlement mechanism
  • Creation and development of the friendly settlement mechanism
  • The role of the Commission in the friendly settlement process
  • Legal framework
  • Beginning of the friendly settlement
  • Closing the friendly settlement
  • Approval Reports: requirements and effects
  • monitoring compliance with friendly settlement agreements
  • Challenges in implementing agreements
  • The role of state institutions in the friendly solutions and the importance of inter-agency coordination
  • Practical tools for multi part negotiation
  • Practical excercise/ simulation of a negotiation



2015

Colombia, May 5, 2015

Training workshop for officials

On May 5, 2015, a training workshop for officials on the procedural aspects of the friendly settlement mechanism was held in Colombia, with the participation of various institutions responsible for the negotiation and implementation of friendly settlement agreements in Colombia. In this workshop included theoretical and practical procedural elements of the friendly settlement mechanism under its regulatory framework, including technical trading tools and case application of the information provided, and practical simulation activities to reach a friendly settlement in a fiction case. Some of the training topics were:

  • Creation and development of the friendly settlement mechanism.
  • Legal Framework
  • Begining of the negotiations
  • Conclusion of the friendly settlement process
  • The role of the Commission in the friendly settlement procedure
  • Friendly Settlement Approval Reports
  • Monitoring of cases under Article 49 of the ACHR
  • The role of state institutions in the friendly settlement and the importance of interagency coordination
  • Compliance with recommendations
  • Practical tools for multi-party negotiations
  • Exercise of application fiction case

Colombia, May 4 - 5, 2015

Fourth National Seminar on the Friendly Settlement Mechanism

On 4 and 5 May 2015 the Fourth National Seminar on the Friendly Settlement Mechanism was held in Colombia, the event was installed at Universidad Externado de Colombia, and it aimed to promote the use of the friendly settlement mechanism as an alternative to the contentious procedure before the Inter-American System of Human Rights. This activity allowed a space for dialogue with representatives of civil society and Colombian government officials, the promotion of the impact of the friendly settlement agreements approved by the Commission, to identify both good practices and the challenges to improve the mechanism and ensure its effectiveness to the benefit from the protection of the rights of victims.



2014

Bolivia, September 5, 2014

Training Workshop for Government Officials in Bolivia

A Training Workshop on Friendly Settlements was held for state agents in La Paz, Bolivia, on September 5, 2014. The workshop examined theoretical and practical procedural aspects of the friendly settlement mechanism based on its legal framework. It also covered technical tools for negotiation and fictional case application with a practical simulation of the necessary steps to reach a friendly settlement.

The workshop was attended by officials from the Office of the Attorney General, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of the Interior, the Ministry of Economy and Finance, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Human Rights Bureau of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the Armed Forces, the Human Rights Bureau of the Bolivian Police, the Office of the Departmental Prosecutor for La Paz, and the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

Bolivia, September 3 - 4, 2014

Third National Seminar on the Friendly Settlement Mechanism in Bolivia

September 3 and 4, 2014 saw the holding of the Third National Seminar on the Friendly Settlement Mechanism in Santa Cruz and La Paz, Bolivia.

The seminars got underway with a presentation delivered by Emilio Álvarez Icaza, Executive Secretary of the IACHR, on the mandate and functions of the IACHR, the friendly settlement procedure, and other general matters. That was followed by a presentation on "International Experiences in Human Rights" given by Denis Racicot, a representative of the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Bolivia. Next there was a panel discussion on "Bolivian Experiences, Their Scope, and Challenges" moderated by Héctor Enrique Arce Zaconeta, Attorney-General of Bolivia. In addition, the seminar in La Paz included a panel discussion on "Petitioners' Experiences in Friendly Settlements" moderated by Julieta Montaño, the victim's representative who worked on the friendly settlement agreement in the MZ case. The seminars concluded with an open discussion on identifying challenges for the friendly settlement mechanism, which yielded a rich exchange on lessons learned, best practices, and suggestions.

Paraguay, June 6, 2014

Second National Seminar on the Friendly Settlement Mechanism in Paraguay

The Second National Seminar on the Friendly Settlement Mechanism was held in Asunción, Paraguay, on June 6, 2014, in the framework of the forty-fourth regular session of the OAS General Assembly



2013

Mexico, October 14 - 15, 2013

First National Seminar on the Friendly Settlement Mechanism in Mexico

The Ibero-American University in Mexico City provided the setting for the First National Seminar on the Friendly Settlement Mechanism on October 14 and 15, 2013.

The Inter-American Commission held this seminar in order to promote the use of the friendly settlement mechanism as an alternative to a contentious proceeding in the inter-American human rights system. Its aim was to raise awareness of the impact achieved by the mechanism and provide an opportunity for dialogue in which petitioners and Mexican state officials could exchange best practices and identify future challenges with a view to bolstering protection of victims' rights.

Guatemala, June 7 - 8, 2013

First Inter-American Conference on Human Rights and the Exchange of Best Practices on Friendly Settlements

The Training Center of the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) in La Antigua, Guatemala, provided the venue for the First Inter-American Conference on Human Rights and the Exchange of Best Practices on Friendly Settlements on June 7 and 8, 2013.

The Inter-American Commission held this conference during the implementation stage of the recommendations for strengthening the inter-American human rights system for the purpose of exchanging best practices on protection of human rights, contributing to the collective construction of inter-American public order, and promoting the use of the friendly settlement mechanism among users of the system.