WASHINGTON, CMC – The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights says it has requested provisional measures from the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACHR) in favor of Lovely Lamour in Haiti, “who is in a situation of extreme gravity and urgency of irreparable damage to her rights.”
In a statement, the Commission, a principal and autonomous body of the Organization of American States (OAS), said in August last year that it granted precautionary measures in favor of Lamour “after identifying that the requirements of seriousness, urgency, and irreparability were met.
“Despite repeated actions to obtain information from the State of Haiti, as well as the call for a working meeting held on February 28, 2024, within the framework of the 189th period of sessions, the Commission has not received a response indicating the adoption of suitable and effective measures to mitigate the identified risk. Nor is there any information on concerted actions or measures to investigate risk events.”
The Commission said that Lamour’s situation had worsened significantly, affecting her safety and her living and health conditions.
“The proposed beneficiary is homeless, outside her usual residence, without identification documents or financial resources to access adequate medical treatment, and suffering from poor nutrition.
“She is currently sleeping in a freight depot. Information suggests that she has been subject to threats from relatives of the person with whom she had an incident in 2023, which led to her arrest that year. In addition, at the place where she sleeps, she has been exposed to physical assault after refusing to have sexual relations with some of the young men who are also there.,” the Commission said.
It said that Lamour did not receive the necessary medical or psychological care during her pregnancy and after giving birth, despite requiring it, and that according to the information available, her physical health has shown a severe deterioration.
“Lamour has reported experiencing problems such as lower back pain and others related to her reproductive health. In addition, it has been mentioned that her mental health has been affected and deteriorated since the separation and subsequent death of her son, who was buried under the category of “indigent.”
The Commission said it does not have information on the health measures provided by the State despite the precautionary measures in force.
It notes that the present request reflects an exceptional situation based on the extreme, urgent, and irreparable risk to Lamour’s rights and that it must be assessed in the context of the State of Haiti, which has been the subject of ongoing analysis by the OAS and the Commission, as well as other human rights bodies.
The Commission said that for these reasons, it requested the Inter-American Court to order the State of Haiti to implement the necessary measures, with a gender perspective, in favor of Lovely Lamour to guarantee her life, personal integrity, and health, including her reproductive health.
It also wants the IACHR to take protective measures to ensure your safety under the conditions you are currently in and report on the measures adopted to ensure respect for your life, personal integrity, and health.
The Commission said the Inter-American Court issues provisional measures in cases of extreme gravity and urgency to prevent irreparable damage to persons.
“They are binding on States, so the decisions contained therein require States to take specific actions to safeguard rights and protect the lives of persons at risk,” the Commission added.
Meanwhile, the Haiti-based media group SOS Journalists is calling on the authorities to ensure that the cases of the murdered journalists Netty Duclair And Diégo Charles are not swept under the carpet.
Duclair worked as a journalist for several media outlets in the capital, including Radio Sans Fin (RSF), while Charles was employed by Radio Vision 2000. They were shot dead on the evening of June 29, 2021, and since then, “the investigation continues” as usual.
“SOS Journalistes, calling on political and judicial authorities to act, demands that a real investigation be carried out so that the alleged perpetrators of the assassination of these journalists are finally identified, arrested, tried and sentenced by the law,” the media group said.
It reiterated a call for all cases of murdered journalists to be “treated with the greatest seriousness and the necessary speed” and that it intends to launch a nationwide protest soon “to ensure that the cases move forward and are concluded within a reasonable time frame.”
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