52
Considerations of the Court
155. This Court will determine the pecuniary damage, which presumes the loss of
or harm to the income of the victim and, when applicable, her next of kin, and the
expenditure incurred as a result of the facts of the case sub judice.111 In this regard,
it will establish a compensatory amount that seeks to compensate the patrimonial
consequences of the violations declared in this judgment.
156. This Court also observes that, at the public hearing and, extemporaneously, in
their brief with final arguments, the representatives of the victim provided a detailed
list and requested a fair compensation for pecuniary damage (indirect damage and
loss of earnings) for the victim, her parents and siblings. The compensation
requested by the representatives is not the same as the compensation requested
originally and includes other beneficiaries, such as María Gabriela Escobar Urrutia
and René Estuardo Escobar Urrutia, Maritza Urrutia’s niece and nephew.
a)
Loss of income
157. The representatives of the victim and the Inter-American Commission
requested compensation for the loss of earning of Maritza Urrutia and, to this end,
they indicated that, at the time of the facts, she carried out political tasks for the
Ejército Guerrillero de los Pobres and was a primary school teacher, and carried out
“other productive work such as giving private classes; she also worked “up until the
facts, as a research assistant on child psychology.” The representatives indicated that
Maritza Urrutia received a monthly salary of US$500.00 (five hundred United States
dollars). Moreover, in her statement before the Court on February 21, 2003, the
victim indicated that:
[a]t that time, [she] was working with Elizabeth de Ruano. She is a psychologist and I
helped her to conduct tests in different nursery schools. At that time, I was also
connected with the revolutionary organization “Ejército Guerrillero de los Pobres.”
158. In view of the foregoing, the Court observes that there are no suitable
vouchers in the file confirming the salary the victim received for her activities at the
time of her abduction and detention. Moreover, the victim was forced to leave
Guatemala for the United States, where she remained for several days and she then
moved to Mexico, where she lived for six years. In the latter country, she carried out
miscellaneous tasks and received an income.
For loss of earning, the Court
establishes, in fairness, the sum of US$5,000.00 (five thousand United States
dollars) as compensation in favor of Maritza Urrutia García.
b)
Indirect damage
159. Based on the information received, the case law of the Court and the facts of
the case, the Court declares that the compensation for pecuniary damage should also
include:
a)
A sum of money corresponding to the expenditure incurred by the
victim in order to purchase plane tickets to travel to the United States and to
Mexico, and also for telephone calls. In this respect, the Court considers it
111
Cf. Juan Humberto Sánchez case, supra note 14, para. 162; Trujillo Oroza case. Reparations,
supra note 97, para. 65; and Bámaca Velásquez case. Reparations, supra note 105, para. 43.