Inter-American Court of Human Rights to hear first sex discrimination case

By Nan Hunter-

Karen Atala y Emma de Ramón

   The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) is seeking review in the Inter-American Court of Human Rights of a case in which Chilean courts denied custody to a lesbian mother on the ground that her homosexuality endangered her children. In April, the IACHR found that the ruling violated the American Convention on Human Rights, but Chile did not comply with the recommendations made by IACHR to rectify the situation. As a result, IACHR is asking the Inter-American Court to intervene.  It will be the first case raising sexual orientation discrimination to be heard by the court, and is the first case outside Europe to use international law in a gay parent's custody case.
   The Commission's decision in April found that Chile was responsible for anti-gay discrimination against Karen Atala in the course of judicial process that resulted in the decision to deny her the care and custody of her daughters. Ironically, Atala is herself a Chilean lawyer and criminal court judge. The decision repudiates a 2004 ruling by the Supreme Court of Chile ordering that Atala’s three daughters be permanently removed from her custody. [Commission determinations are not published, but are conveyed to the appropriate national government, directing it to take action to ensure that similar future violations do not occur. An earlier decision in the case, granting jurisdiction, can be found at here.]
   The IACHR is an autonomous body of the Organization of American States (OAS), which derives its mandate from the OAS Charter and the American Convention on Human Rights. It is composed of seven independent members who are elected by the OAS General Assembly. The Inter-American Court of Human Rights is located in San Jose, Costa Rica.

for more from Nan Hunter visit Hunter For Justice.


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