Moiwana Village v. Suriname: A Portal into Recent Jurisprudential Developments of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights

Abstract

On June 15, 2005, the Inter-American Court issued its judgment in Moiwana Village v. Suriname, which held Suriname responsible for numerous human rights violations and ordered several remedial measures. In a separate opinion, one of the Tribunal's veteran judges, Ant¿nio Can¿ado-Trindade, wrote that the case "raises issues of great transcendence." Certainly, the decision illustrates several of the Court's latest jurisprudential developments, and navigates a few rising socio-political tides in South and Central America. This brief essay seeks to demonstrate how the Moiwana case: a) presents factual situations that are increasingly common before the Court; b) continues to develop key legal constructions in response to such facts; c) foreshadows a significant evolution with respect to elements of the Tribunal's more "traditional" jurisprudence; and d) reflects, nevertheless, a prevailing caution regarding other aspects of legal analysis.

Keywords: Human rights, international law, Inter-American Court of Human Rights, indigenous rights, tribal rights, cultural rights, forced displacement, Inter-American system of human rights protection