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CHAPTER
V TWELFTH
SESSION OF THE COMMISSION
The Commission held its Twelfth Session from October 5 to 15,
1965, with all the members in attendance. The meetings took place at the
permanent headquarters of the Commission, in the Pan American Union,
Washington, D.C.
1. Study of the
Dominican case
The situation regarding human rights in the Dominican Republic
was a main topic of this working meeting. The Commission made a detailed
study of the work done by the Chairman and the other members who
represented it in Dominican territory, and it considered the reports
presented individually by Drs. Manuel Bianchi, Mrs. Acuña de Chacón,
Carlos Alberto Dunshee de Abranches, and Durward V. Sandifer, which
covered the actions carried out from June 1 to August 31, 1965.
Moreover, the Commission considered the draft report presented by
the Executive Secretariat, which covers all the work done by the
Commission in that country. This document was approved in the meeting
held on October 14, 1965.
2. Invitation
from the Dominican Government
On September 27, 1965, the Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs of
the Dominican Provisional Government, Dr. Rafael Mencía Lister,
addressed a note to the Commission inviting it to be present in the
country.
The text of the invitation is as follows:
MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS Nº 1254 Santo
Domingo, D.N.
September 27, 1965
Excellency,
I have the honor to address
you, under instructions from my government, to request, in accordance
with the provisions of Article 51 of the Institutional Act, that the
Inter-American Commission on Human Rights remain in the Dominican
Republic until the installation of the government that will emanate from
the next elections.
My government wishes to inform you hereby that the Commission may
count upon our full cooperation for the purpose of permitting the
faithful observation of the provisions contained in the Second Part of
the Institutional Act, regarding human rights and the basic freedoms.
I shall await news from you regarding the request contained in
the present Note.
Accept, Excellency, the assurance of my highest consideration.
(s) RAFAEL MENCIA
LISTER
VICE
MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
His Excellency
Mr. Manuel Bianchi
Chairman of the
Inter-American Commission
on Human Rights
City
The Commission, taking in due consideration the above invitation,
decided in the course of the session to accept it and to acknowledge it
by a note addressed to Vice Minister Mencía Lister, the text of which
is the following:
October 19, 1965
Mister Vice Minister,
With reference to your kind note of September 27, in which you
requested that, in accordance with the provisions of Article 51 of the
Institutional Act, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights remain
in the Dominican Republic until the installation of the government that
will emanate from the next elections, I wish to make known to you that
the Commission accepts, and is thankful for, this significant honor,
which shows the reiterated confidence placed in the work it has been
doing in that noble nation.
The Commission will continue, in accordance with its competence,
to defend human rights in general, and particularly those envisaged in
the Second Part of the Institutional Act, thus maintaining, in the
fulfillment of its duties the respect due to the personality,
sovereignty, and independence of the Dominican Republic.
Accept, Sir, the renewed assurances of my highest consideration.
Manuel Bianchi
Chairman
His Excellency
Dr.
Rafael Mencía Lister
Vice
Minister of Foreign Affairs
Santo Domingo
Dominican Republic
3. Tasks to be
carried out by the Commission in the Dominican Republic
In the course of its meetings the Commission considered the tasks
that it should carry out in Dominican Territory until the holding of the
elections and the inauguration of the elected President.
For this purpose, it considered the present situation of the
country in the light of the information presented by the Chairman of the
Commission and its other members, and examined the extent of its powers
in accordance with its Statute. The Commission also took into
consideration the decision adopted at its Eleventh (Special) Session, as
well as the provisions of Article 51 of the Institutional Act of the
Dominican Republic.
At the tenth meeting, held on October 15, the Commission approved
a resolution that set forth the tasks it should accomplish in Dominican
territory.
The text of that resolution is as follows:
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights
IN VIEW OF:
The invitation that has been extended to it by the Provisional
Government of the Dominican Republic, in accordance with the provisions
of Article 51 of the Institutional Act,
RESOLVES:
1.
To accept and to express its appreciation for the invitation
because of the reiterated confidence thereby expressed by the Dominican
Government in the work of the Commission.
2.
To maintain its office in Santo Domingo, and to go to Dominican
territory, if the circumstances make this advisable, as a complete group
or through the sending of a subcommittee, or its Chairman, or members of
the Commission individually, representing it.
3.
To continue, in the Dominican Republic, in accordance with the
competence established in its Statute, its Regulations, and the practice
already observed in that country by the Commission, the defense of the
human rights set forth in the American Declaration of the Rights and
Duties of Man, and particularly those envisaged in the Second Part of
the Institutional Act, insofar as they coincide with those set forth in
the said Declaration, maintaining, in the performance of its functions,
the respect due to the personality, sovereignty, and independence of
that American state.
October 15, 1965
(s) Manuel
Bianchi, Chairman
(s)
Gabino Fraga, Vice Chairman
(s)
Angela Acuña de Chacón
(s)
Carlos A. Dunshee de Abranches
(s)
Gonzalo Escudero
(s)
Daniel Hugo Martins
(s)
Durward V. Sandifer
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