IACHR files application before Inter-American Court of Human Rights in case concerning the rights of indigenous peoples in voluntary isolation in Peru

December 4, 2024

Washington, D.C. – The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) filed on November 1, 2024, an application before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in case 13,572, concerning Peru. This case involves violations of the rights of the Mashco Piro, Yora, and Amahuaca indigenous peoples in voluntary isolation and initial contact.

These peoples, who live on territorial reserves in Peru like the Madre de Dios Territorial Reserve, have been affected by various activities linked to logging, mining, and illegal deforestation despite having been formally recognized by the State in Supreme Decree 001-2014-MC.

A reclassification study conducted by World Wildlife Fund Peru recommended an expansion of indigenous reserves to protect the land of the Mashco Piro people. However, although that recommendation was approved in 2016, the process is yet to be completed, so these communities remain vulnerable to outside contact. Considering the risks to these peoples' lives and property, petitioners filed a writ of amparo in 2008, but this was declared invalid in 2012.

In Admissibility and Merits Report 397/22, the IACHR found that the Peruvian State had failed to adequately recognize ownership of these peoples' territories and to effectively protect their land, which harmed their right to property.

The IACHR also found that Peru's current legislation, including Article 5 of Act 28736, is insufficient to safeguard these peoples' rights, since it allows the exploitation of natural resources as a "public necessity" without taking into consideration its effects on these peoples' subsistence. For instance, oil and gas exploitation persists with no regard for the integrity of the territories of the Mashco Piro, Yora, and Amahuaca peoples.

The IACHR noted that the process launched by the petitioners' writ of amparo was extremely long and full of formalities, which harmed their access to justice. The IACHR further noted that the ensuing delays had been caused by the behavior of judicial authorities. The IACHR therefore found that the State of Peru had violated these peoples' rights to a fair trial and to judicial protection.

The IACHR found that the Peruvian State was responsible for violations of the rights held in Articles 8.1 (judicial guarantees), 13 (freedom of expression), 21 (collective property), 23 (political rights), 25 (judicial protection), and 26 (cultural rights) of the American Convention to the detriment of the Mashco Piro, Yora, and Amahuaca peoples, in keeping with the obligations held in Article 1.1 of the same instrument. The IACHR also found that the State had violated Article 21 of the American Convention, in keeping with the obligations held in Article 2 of the same instrument.

The IACHR recommended that the State provide comprehensive redress, including the following measures:

1. Identifying the lands of the Mashco Piro, Yora, and Amahuaca peoples and adequately recognizing their boundaries, guaranteeing their ownership with fully valid deeds, and completing without further delays the reclassification process so that the Madre de Dios Reserve is recognized as an Indigenous Reserve
2. Setting boundaries for protected areas and adopting measures to prevent economic exploitation in those areas
3. Reviewing concessions involving the territories of indigenous peoples in voluntary isolation and initial contact and taking any necessary corrective measures to protect these peoples' collective property, enforcing the principle of no contact and ensuring prior consultation
4. Taking normative measures to audit mining and illegal deforestation activities in Madre de Dios
5. Taking measures to ensure non-recurrence, including legislative action and training programs for judicial authorities concerning the rights of indigenous peoples and access to justice for indigenous peoples in voluntary isolation and initial contact

The IACHR is an autonomous body of the Organization of American States (OAS) whose mandate is based on the OAS Charter and the American Convention on Human Rights. Its mission is to promote and defend human rights throughout the Americas and to serve as an advisory body to the OAS in this area. The IACHR consists of seven independent members elected by the OAS General Assembly who serve in a personal capacity and do not represent their countries of origin or residence.

No. 305/24

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