ABSTRACT
The Norín Catrimán et al. (leaders, members, and activists of the Mapuche indigenous people) v. Chile case concerns criminal proceedings involving traditional authorities and members of the Mapuche indigenous people and activists working to defend the rights of this people. Criminal proceedings were brought against them for events that occurred in 2001 and 2002, resulting from which they were convicted of terrorism. In Norín Catrimán, the IACtHR holds Chile internationally responsible for several violations of the ACHR, as the violation of political rights as enshrined in Art. 23. The IACtHR considered that, in the given circumstances, the imposition of ancillary penalties, which affected the right to vote, direct participation in public affairs, and access to public office, of an absolute and perpetual nature or for a fixed-but-prolonged term (15 years), was contrary to the principle of proportionality of the punishment and amounted to severe impairment of political rights. In the remedial measures, a crucial role is played by adopting all the administrative, judicial, or any other types of measures required to overturn all aspects of the criminal judgments. The Chilean judicial authorities recently adopted these measures.
