Brazil was condemned by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) for imposing prolonged and unfounded solitary confinement on Chilean Mauricio Hernández Norambuena. The decision, made last Friday (23), determines that Brazil pay compensation for non-pecuniary damages, in addition to the costs of the process and the refund of amounts to the Legal Assistance Fund for Victims of the Court.
Mauricio Norambuena was arrested in 2002 and sentenced to 30 years in prison for the kidnapping of Brazilian publicist Washington Olivetto. According to the Commission, the kidnapper was imprisoned in isolation for 4 years and 2 months, between 2002 and 2006. After being held in several prisons in Brazil, he was extradited to Chile in 2019.
There, the effect of the isolation and incommunicado regime on the convict’s physical and mental health was noted, stated the Public Defender’s Office of the Union of Brazil, which represented the Chilean. According to the defense, Norambuena developed hypertension, vertigo, body tremors, anxiety and depression, in addition to a tumor in his throat.
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The court recognized that the Differentiated Disciplinary Regime is compatible with the American Convention on Human Rights. However, he highlighted that the application must be exceptional, temporary and under strict judicial control to avoid abuses and violations of human dignity – which would not have occurred in the case in question.
The report asked for a position from the Ministry of Human Rights, but has not yet received a response.
