Inter-American Court of Human Rights' reparation judgments ...

52 Revista IIDH[Vol. 49The final judgment of this case finally contemplated integral reparationswhere moral or immaterial damage were awarded not just in an economicalway.The victims of this case were poor young boys whose mothers hadsuffered for so many years trying to get justice. The psychological expertevidence in this case was very consistent and defended the idea that theboys were certainly the economical support of the families, and that theywere of special value for their mothers. Poverty did not let them appropriateanything else except their own maternity. Material reparations could notsubstitute this loss; only the symbolic one given by the public sufferingrecognition.The concept of “Life Plan” or “Proyecto de vida”In Loayza Tamayo v. Peru, the inter-American system has madeone major and creative innovation in matter of reparations: the so calledProyecto de vida. This concept is associated with the notion of personaltranscendence, and at the same time it is about all the options (not just theeconomic ones) that victims have in their lives to reach their full potentials.It is as an expectation that is both reasonable and attainable in practice. Thedamage to this life plan implies the loss or severe diminution, in a mannerthat is irreparable or reparable only with great difficulty, of a person’sprospects for self-development. 52The Inter-American Court of Human Rights took a step in the evolutionof the law of remedies in this reparations judgment, when it recognized andaccepted the concept of project of life, lost opportunities and enjoymentof life, as an element of damages independent of lost future earnings. TheCourt described proyecto de vida as the applicant’s reasonable expectationsfor the future. While accepting the claim in principle and finding that theapplicant had suffered harm to his/her proyecto de vida, the Court failed tomake recognition under this heading. No other applicants have presenteda methodology for calculating such damages. 5352 Faúndez, H., El sistema interamericano de protección de los derechoshumanos..., p. 841. (Author’s translation.)53 Shelton, D., Remedies in International Human Rights Law..., p. 229.