Constitutional Chamber Date of Resolution: February 20, 2026, at 9:30 a.m.
Case File: 25-013749-0007-CO Type of Matter: Amparo appeal CONSTITUTIONAL CHAMBER OF THE SUPREME COURT OF JUSTICE. San José, at nine o'clock and thirty minutes on the twentieth of February two thousand twenty-six.
Amparo appeal filed by Nombre01, identity card no. CED03, against the NATIONAL DIRECTORATE OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT (DIRECCIÓN NACIONAL DE DESARROLLO DE LA COMUNIDAD, DINADECO) and the INTEGRAL DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION OF THE INDIGENOUS RESERVE OF TÉRRABA DE BUENOS AIRES.
Whereas:
- 1By brief received via the Chamber's Online Management system on May 16, 2025, the petitioner files an amparo appeal against the National Directorate of Community Development and the Integral Development Association of the Indigenous Reserve of Térraba de Buenos Aires. He states that he is an indigenous person, an older adult, a human rights defender, and holds the status of Elder (Mayor) of the Brörán indigenous people, located in the Indigenous Territory of Térraba. Due to his role as a traditional authority and defender of the collective rights of his people, he has been the target of repeated threats, direct attacks against his physical integrity, and a systematic environment of discrimination, both by the respondent ADI and by various state authorities. On April 30, 2015, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (hereinafter, the "IACHR"), in response to a request submitted by him, Mr.Sergio Rojas Ortiz, and other indigenous defenders from the territories of Salitre and Térraba, issued Resolution 16/15, granting precautionary measure No. 321-12 in favor of the Bribri people of Salitre and the Brörán people of Térraba. In said resolution, the IACHR recognized the situation of risk faced by the beneficiaries due to their work defending territory and human rights. The precautionary measure remains in force to date, and the Costa Rican State -through the Executive Branch- has still not implemented an adequate security framework to guarantee its effectiveness. Likewise, Mr. Nombre02 is a petitioner in case no. 14.026 before the IACHR, in which -among other reported violations- the illegitimacy of the figure of the Integral Development Association (ADI) as an institution imposed on the Brörán people is alleged. This allegation is based on the violation of Article 2 of the American Convention on Human Rights (Pact of San José), in relation to the collective right of the Brörán indigenous people to have their own legal personality, in accordance with their traditional institutions.This right is also protected by the obligations assumed by the Costa Rican State by virtue of Convention 169 of the International Labour Organization (ILO), which imposes the duty to respect and guarantee the right of indigenous peoples to conserve and develop their own institutional structures. This case was admitted by the IACHR through Admissibility Report No. 167/20, issued on April 24, 2020, thus recognizing the seriousness of the reported facts and the jurisdiction of the inter-American system to analyze the alleged violations. Likewise, he alleges that he has been a repeated victim of irregular disaffiliation processes by the ADI, which have been executed without any respect for due process, in open retaliation for his critical stance and his well-founded opposition to the figure of the ADI as a body imposed on the Brörán indigenous people. Despite the foregoing, the ADI has persisted in a systematic practice of arbitrary disaffiliations.On February 15, 2025, during an Extraordinary Assembly of the ADI of Térraba, Mr. Genaro Gutiérrez -president of the Board of Directors- requested that he withdraw from the session, claiming that he was not affiliated, despite the fact that his affiliation is supported by firm resolutions from this Chamber. Given his refusal to leave the Assembly, the intervention of the Public Force was requested in order to prevent him from exercising his rights. Although he managed to remain in the venue, he was denied the right to speak and the right to vote, severely violating his rights to participation under equal conditions. Faced with this new act of exclusion, Mr. Nombre02 filed a nullity action before DINADECO. However, this was rejected through resolution DINADECO-DLR-RE-036-2025 of April 3, 2025, on the grounds that he lacked standing as he did not appear as an affiliate, flagrantly ignoring the constitutional resolutions that previously ordered his affiliation.It should be noted that this type of action forms part of a persistent pattern of discrimination and institutional harassment against human rights defenders in the indigenous territory, particularly those who exercise a critical leadership role regarding the ADI structure. On multiple occasions, after an affiliation order issued by this Chamber was fulfilled, the Board of Directors -under the leadership of Mr. Genaro Gutiérrez- has reoffended with new disaffiliations, forcing indigenous leaders to resort again and again to constitutional amparo as the only way to enforce basic rights of participation and representation. Far from signifying a resignation or inaction regarding the figure of the ADI, his opposition to this imposed state structure has been accompanied by firm vigilance and public denunciation of acts of corruption, administrative irregularities, and decisions contrary to the collective rights of the Brörán people.Such responsible exercise of defense has provoked increasingly serious reprisals, which violate not only his individual rights, but also the democratic principles and respect for the indigenous institutional framework protected by International Law. The ADI, furthermore, has sustained over time a continuous pattern of fraudulent, discriminatory actions contrary to the constitutional framework and international human rights law, directed both against indigenous defenders and against the collective interests of the Brörán people. These actions, far from being isolated events, have been identified as possible human rights violations by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), which included them as substantial elements in Admissibility Report No. 167/20 of Case 14.026, currently pending before said international body. One of the most serious elements demonstrating this conduct is the active collaboration of the ADI with non-indigenous persons who usurp indigenous lands in bad faith.Far from fulfilling its legal duty to manage their eviction or, in exceptional cases, the expropriation procedure when conditions of good faith exist, the ADI has acted as an ally of those who hold illegitimate possession over lands in the territory. Instead of defending the collective right of the Brörán people over their lands, it has even promoted actions aimed at legitimizing the presence of these usurpers. This is explicitly evidenced in the development of the most recent ADI Assembly, which was subsequently annulled by Nombre03 solely on issues of quorum, without evaluating the substance of its agreements, despite their evident illegality. In said Assembly, the Board of Directors led by Mr. Genaro Gutiérrez agreed to advance with the creation of a mechanism for the economic legitimization of the occupation of indigenous lands by non-indigenous persons, literally approving: "13) Elaboration of the Regulation for the charging of the cultural and environmental compensation fee from non-indigenous people who hold possession or use rights over lands within the territory.The Board of Directors is authorized to execute and sign all agreements, documents, and contracts that are necessary for this process, as well as to negotiate with CONAI and INDER to access the inventory of possessors and areas of the recipients of this regulation." This agreement not only constitutes a flagrant transgression of the current legal framework -which obliges the State and its auxiliary bodies to protect the exclusive right of indigenous peoples over their territories- but also institutionalizes a mechanism for legitimizing and profiting from usurpation, in open contradiction with the principle of imprescriptibility of indigenous territories. Added to this is the evident alteration and falsification of the participation records at said Assembly, where the attendee lists were prepared with uniform handwriting, which casts doubt on the veracity of the act and the decisions adopted.Furthermore, at the same event, the ADIT agreed to deny access to fundamental projects in matters of economic and social rights to those farms peacefully recovered by indigenous defenders, textually stating: "14) That any project in housing, water, electricity, production, and of any other nature shall be prohibited on farms that are in litigation or invaded." This provision represents a direct act of institutional reprisal against indigenous persons who have exercised their right to defend the territory, criminalizing the peaceful recovery of ancestral lands and denying access to essential basic services such as water and electricity. The president of the ADIT, Mr. Genaro Gutiérrez, qualifies as "invaded" the farms that have been legitimately recovered by the indigenous people, thus criminalizing the defense of indigenous rights in defense of their land. These illegal and discriminatory practices have been repeatedly brought to the attention of the National Directorate of Community Development (DINADECO) and its responsible official, Mr.Francisco Arrieta, both through formal channels (minutes, official letters, and meetings within the framework of the implementation of precautionary measure MC 321-12) and directly during official meetings. Despite this, Mr. Arrieta has omitted his oversight duty, allowing the continuation of these violations. This repeated, sustained omission constitutes a form of institutional complicity that aggravates the situation of risk and systematic violation of the rights of the Brörán indigenous people and their defenders". Now, he says that on August 8, 2019, through Executive Decree (Decreto Ejecutivo) No. 41903-MP-MJP, the Executive Branch made official and declared of public interest the database of persons of the Térraba/Brörán ethnic group, held by the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (Tribunal Supremo de Elecciones, TSE), recognizing it as the official and mandatory consultation mechanism for public institutions in decision-making related to this indigenous people.This provision aims to guarantee certainty, legality, and respect for the self-determination of the Brörán people, and to avoid the manipulation of parallel rolls -such as that of the ADI- which have historically served as instruments of exclusion, political control, and structural discrimination. However, the ADI has persisted in using an arbitrary roll that: A) Excludes indigenous persons legitimately registered in the official TSE database who request to join the association; and B) Includes non-indigenous persons who do not appear in said official database, some of whom even hold interests contrary to the rights of the indigenous people. This practice has been repeatedly denounced before DINADECO, without it adopting any measure to correct it. On the contrary, at the official meeting on November 24, 2024, regarding the implementation of precautionary measure MC-321-12 -in which Mr. Francisco Arrieta, from the Legal Directorate, and the director of DINADECO, Roberto Alvarado Astúa, participated-, Mr.Arrieta stated that the ADI's affiliate roll fully coincided with the official TSE database. Such statement was formally disproven by him through a letter dated December 11, 2024, addressed to the Directorate of DINADECO, in which the following was noted: "During the meeting, Mr. Arrieta assured that the ADI Térraba roll was consistent with the Database held by the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE). However, this statement is false (...) At least eight persons included in the ADI Térraba roll were identified who are not registered in the Database held by the TSE (...). This is just one more example that highlights the recurring inconsistencies and lack of rigor on the part of the Legal Directorate of Dinadeco, which significantly contributes to the distrust that exists towards this department." Despite the seriousness of this denunciation and its substantiation, Mr. Arrieta merely forwarded the letter to the president of the ADI, Mr.Genaro Gutiérrez, without issuing any institutional pronouncement. To date, the content of the letter has not been addressed or resolved, demonstrating a deliberate omission in the fulfillment of legal and constitutional oversight duties. He emphasizes that "The repeated exclusion of Mr. Nombre02 from the ADIT, despite having a subjective right, even previously recognized by this Chamber, constitutes a direct violation of his fundamental rights to political participation, equality before the law, and non-discrimination, protected by the Political Constitution and international human rights law. Mr. Nombre02 is an indigenous person, human rights defender, and Elder (Mayor) of the Brörán people, recognized as a beneficiary of MC 321-12 granted by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (Resolution 16/15 of April 30, 2015). By virtue of his leadership and active defense of his people's right to self-determination and protection of the territory, he has been subject to a systematic pattern of discrimination by the ADIT, with the acquiescence of DINADECO, a public entity of a state nature that legally supervises development associations (which in turn are the entity through which Nombre03 must fulfill its functions at the community level according to article 6 of its law).As was noted in the facts of this appeal, Mr. Nombre02 was arbitrarily disaffiliated, and his right to affiliation had already been expressly recognized by this honorable Chamber, which ordered his immediate reinstatement as an affiliate, along with other persons also defending the rights of the Brörán People. Despite this clear order, the reprisals continued. On February 15, 2025, during an Extraordinary Assembly, the president of the ADI Térraba, Genaro Gutiérrez, prevented him from exercising his rights as an affiliate, even requesting the intervention of the Public Force. Despite remaining at the assembly, he was denied the right to speak and the right to vote, depriving him of the exercise of his political rights under equal conditions. Subsequently, Nombre03 rejected a nullity action filed by him, arguing that he was not an affiliate, in Resolution DINADECO-DLR-RE-036-2025, thereby ignoring the binding resolution of this Chamber.It is especially serious that this practice is not an isolated event but forms part of a sustained pattern of reprisals and institutionalized discrimination and that it enjoys the acquiescence of DINADECO. (...) It must be highlighted that the arbitrary disaffiliation of Mr. Nombre02 constitutes a form of concealed sanction for his role as a human rights defender, insofar as his critical stance regarding the illegitimacy of the ADI and the actions of Nombre03 has been used as justification to exclude him from the only mechanism enabled by the State to participate in indigenous community life. This exclusion directly impacts not only his individual political rights but also his collective right as a member of the Brörán people to influence the administration of his territory. The functional link between Nombre03 and the ADIs must also be taken into account, expressly established in Article 6, second paragraph of Law No. 3859, which imposes a direct responsibility on the state body for the supervision, oversight, and correction of the unlawful practices committed by said associations.Nombre03 is legally obligated to ensure that the ADIs act in accordance with the law and in respect of the fundamental rights of indigenous persons. In this case". Based on the arguments presented, he considers that fundamental rights are being violated by the accused actions. He requests that the appeal be granted and the following be ordered: "(…) Based on the foregoing, we very respectfully request the honorable Magistrates, the following:1) Order the ADI Térraba to incorporate Mr. Nombre02 into the affiliate roll.2) Order the ADI Térraba and Mr. Genaro Gutiérrez to refrain from carrying out intimidating acts against Mr. Nombre02, including his unilateral disaffiliation without following due process.3) Order Nombre03 to sanitize the Affiliate Roll of the ADI Térraba, so that only persons within the Database held by the TSE and who live in the Térraba Indigenous Territory constitute said roll. Declare the responsibility of the ADIT and Nombre03 for the violations of the territorial, social, and political rights of Mr. Nombre02, and order the payment of the corresponding reparations. 5) Condemn Nombre03 and the ADI Térraba to pay the personal and procedural costs of this process. Accessorily, the following is respectfully requested: 6) Declare the invalidity of Executive Decree No. 8487 "Regulation to the Indigenous Law" for transgressing norms of a higher hierarchical order (human rights) and the principle of pacta sunt servanda (…)".
- 2In a resolution at 1:54 p.m. on May 20, 2025, the amparo is processed, and a report is requested from the director of the National Directorate of Community Development, and the president of the Integral Development Association of the Indigenous Reserve of Térraba de Buenos Aires is given notice regarding the facts alleged by the petitioner.
- 3By brief received via the Chamber's email on May 27, 2026, Roberto Alvarado Astúa, in his capacity as director of the National Directorate of Community Development, reports under oath that: "(…) given the lack of clarity regarding the alleged illegitimacy of the figure of the ADI, we could limit ourselves solely to the fact that before Dinadeco, the Integral Development Association of the Indigenous Reserve of Térraba de Buenos Aires-Puntarenas, registration code No. 1528, according to the Public Registry of Community Development Associations kept for that purpose by the Legal and Registry Directorate, under Volume: 5, Folio: 863, Entry: 1973, said community organization is registered and active, having been constituted on October 26, 1975. As a corollary to the above, the aforementioned community organization is the only legally recognized instance as its authority within the indigenous territory, as established in Article No. 1 of Executive Decree No. 13568 C-G of April 30, 1982, which states: 'The Integral Development Associations have the legal representation of the Indigenous Communities and act as their local government.' It should be clarified that the development associations constituted in indigenous territories possess certain characteristics that are part of their legal nature, which are indicated in the Indigenous Law, No. 6172 of November 16, 1977, which states: '... the indigenous community development associations are the local governments and official representatives of the indigenous communities and, consequently, any action or project by official or private organizations or persons must be processed through them.' …Regarding what was alleged by the petitioner, with respect to the disaffiliation from the Integral Development Association of the Indigenous Reserve of Térraba de Buenos Aires-Puntarenas, registration code No. 1528, indeed, through Resolution DINADECO-DLR-RE-036-2025 of eight hours and five minutes on April three, two thousand twenty-five, the National Directorate of Dinadeco heard a nullity action filed against the general assembly of affiliates held on February fifteen, two thousand twenty-five, filed by Mr.Nombre01, identity card number CED01 and ARNOLDO GUTIÉRREZ REYES, identity card number CED02. In this resolution, it was determined that Mr. Nombre01 is not an affiliate of the community organization, the foregoing supported by the disaffiliation process carried out by the board of directors in 2017, which is recorded in minute number three of June fourth, two thousand seventeen, an agreement that was duly ratified by the general assembly on August sixth, two thousand seventeen. For this reason, said petitioner has not been part of the affiliate roll since said date and consequently does not have standing to file said nullity action. In this sense, attached hereto is a copy of the minutes of the general assembly dated August sixth, two thousand seventeen, as well as a copy of the response of the board of directors, reporting on the disaffiliation process of Mr. Nombre01. It is important to mention that Mr.Nombre01 did not file any type of ordinary appeal against said resolution, and what was resolved by the Legal and Registry Directorate of Dinadeco became final, …Regarding this issue of affiliations, it is not the responsibility of the National Directorate of Community Development to process them -receipt and approval-, it being the responsibility of the Integral Development Association of the Indigenous Reserve of Térraba itself to receive the affiliation requests, in accordance with the provisions of numeral 27 of the Regulation to Law 3859 on Community Development, which provides: "Article 27.- Any request for association must be resolved by the board of directors that receives it within a period of one calendar month. If no response is obtained, the request shall be considered to have been favorably accepted. In any case, if the right of association is denied, whether to a natural or legal person, it must be in a reasoned manner, and such decision shall have a remedy of reconsideration before the board of directors and an appeal in the alternative before the next general assembly held by the association." It is clear that the board of directors is responsible for resolving in the first instance the affiliation requests made by interested natural persons.The request is generally written, formulated individually or collectively. The governing body has one calendar month, counted from date to date, to resolve. If no response is given, the positive silence rule applies from the expiration date of the elapsed month. …Dinadeco does not have the competence to intervene in the affiliation processes of the indigenous territory of Térraba, it being the responsibility of the ADI of Térraba to receive the affiliation requests, to have the endorsement of the Councils of Elders of Térraba and Bröran, who determine if the applicants are descendants of the indigenous ethnic group Teribe/Térraba, in accordance with the provisions of Executive Decree No. 41903-MP of August 8, 2019, called Officialization of the Database of Persons of the Térraba/Brörán Ethnic Group as a Consultation Mechanism for the Public Administration and its Declaration of National Interest, which for the matter of interest provided in Article No. 1, the following: 'The Database of Persons of the Térraba/Brörán Ethnic Group, held by the Civil Registry of the Supreme Electoral Tribunal -hereinafter Civil Registry-, is hereby made official for use by the Public Administration, as a mechanism for consultation and verification of information related to the identity of indigenous Térrabas/Brörán persons.' …Regarding this general assembly convened by the board of directors of the Integral Development Association of the Indigenous Reserve of Térraba, registration code No. 1528, for February 15, 2025, Nombre03 through Resolution DINADECO-DLR-RE-036-2025 of eight hours and five minutes on April three, two thousand twenty-five, indeed decreed the nullity of the mentioned general assembly, as well as all its registrable agreements, by virtue of the fact that the start of the assembly event occurred after the period established by law to hold the assembly in second call.Regarding the matters related to land recovery, housing projects, water, electricity, and other aspects mentioned by the petitioner, it is clear that this representation lacks competence to intervene in the matter and issue a criterion on it, it being the responsibility of the community organization itself through its representatives to file the pertinent processes before the relevant bodies that allow them to resolve the conflicts raised. Regarding the denunciation that Dinadeco has omitted its oversight duty, allowing the continuation of these violations, it is necessary to indicate, contrary to what was stated by the petitioner, that Nombre03 has held meetings on multiple occasions with the different internal indigenous bodies of the territory of Térraba, to address governance problems in said territory, by way of example, the meeting held on November 26, 2024, the undersigned accompanied by the Regional Director of Nombre03 in the area, Mr.Daniel Mesen Araya, and Mr. Francisco Arrieta Carballo, Attorney of the Legal Department of DINADECO, held meetings, separately, with different representatives of the indigenous territory of Térraba, including representatives of the ITCI, the Bröran Council of Elders, and community residents, who were heard regarding the problems they indicate having in the governance of the territory, specifically, with the administration of the ADI of the Indigenous Reserve of Térraba; whereupon an open dialogue was held in which they were advised, and recommendations were made to the inquiries raised. For your information, attached hereto is Official Letter DINADECO-DDN-OF-312-2025 dated April 22, 2025, which responds to Ms. Nathalie Artavia Chavarría, Vice Minister of Peace, Ministry of Justice and Peace, which relates to the issue at hand. Likewise, it is important to mention that the issues raised by the petitioner in his amparo are long-standing and a product of the existing conflict; however, within its legal and administrative competencies, Nombre03 has always strived to be present, in order to resolve whatever is appropriate to the extent that the legal framework allows us.When it has been necessary, intervention has been made, attending to and resolving complaints against the ADI of the Indigenous Reserve of Térraba; in the same way, nullity actions filed against assemblies held by the mentioned community organization are attended to and resolved; proof of this is that the last assembly held on February 15 of this year was annulled by DINADECO, on the grounds that defects that led to its nullity occurred during the development of the assembly, as has been abundantly reiterated previously. …Contrary to what was stated by Mr. Nombre01, Nombre03 within the scope of its competencies, has always been characterized by following up on the actions of the ADI of Térraba; an example of this, the board of directors of the ADI of Térraba was made aware of the inconsistencies presented by the affiliate roll of this indigenous development association, through Official Letter Nombre03 DL-OF No. 062-2024 dated March 15, 2024, which is attached, as well as the email notification footer to the board of directors of the ADI of the Indigenous Reserve of Térraba.
As noted above, the sole entity responsible for initiating, implementing, and concluding affiliation processes is the board of directors of the community organization, since a point is reached where Nombre03 lacks jurisdiction to intervene in decision-making, given that, as the private organization it is, it could take a contrary position even if it contravenes what is established in the regulations,… Finally, in the opinion of this representation, Nombre03 has acted in strict adherence to the regulations governing community affairs and, more specifically, indigenous community development organizations, seeking to serve as guarantors and overseers of the processes, without the foregoing implying that it possesses the necessary jurisdiction to settle internal conflicts of the Asociación de Desarrollo Integral de la Reserva Indígena de Térraba de Buenos Aires-Puntarenas, registration code No. 1528 (…)”.
- 4By a brief received via the Court’s Online Case Management system on May 30, 2026, Genaro Gutiérrez Reyes, in his capacity as president of the Asociación de Desarrollo Integral de Térraba, states that: “(…) FIRST FACT: Regarding the condition of indigenous person, senior citizen, human rights defender, and elder of the Bröran indigenous people, I must indicate that we are still in the internal investigation to determine what fraudulent mechanism was allegedly used to include the surname Nombre04, Sivas, Sibar, or Nombre05 within the genealogical trunks of this indigenous people, since to the understanding of this indigenous local government and as far as the Tribunal Supremo de Elecciones has allowed us, this surname was never endorsed as part of the trunks that would have been contemplated. This gentleman plays in some way with the first name and surnames that determine his identity, since on some occasions he appears as Nombre02, Nombre05, Nombre04, or Sivas, and even as Nombre01.Regarding these differences, note how in Case File: 09-016480-0007-CO, Resolution No. 2010-010224, a person appears with this surname written as Nombre05; in his personal email, this gentleman identifies himself as ...01; on his birth certificate, he appears as Nombre01 and is known as Nombre02; and in the nullity action brief before Nombre03, he identifies himself as Nombre02. On another note, this gentleman is not his defender, for he is the one who legitimately mobilizes a small indigenous group within the ADI, against Nombre03, and against the Law itself; this gentleman is a human rights violator, not its defender, for he is the one who legitimately mobilizes a small indigenous group within the ADI, against Nombre03, and against the Law itself; this gentleman is a land invader, a usurper of power, and self-proclaimed authority within this territory. What is also known is that a small indigenous group, financed by national and international NGOs that fund and sustain their activities, has been managed.Finally, we want to make clear that the indigenous local government of Térraba is a government that is legitimately among us, whom we call elders, and through them we assert our rights and make them known, so this gentleman and those he very poorly identifies with, he is not from a vast surname legitimizing this indigenous people of Térraba, having opted for that after an ancestral identification process. Thus, if this gentleman belongs to that indigenous people self-called Bröran, we know nothing of the existence of that ethnic materiality among us. SECOND FACT: Regarding the systematic action of discrimination by this ADI, as he himself points out, the only thing we have done is respect the statutory procedures and other rules that regulate us. It is clear that what this gentleman reveals is that he is against those regulations, but it is not our place to resolve that, and the petitioner does not prove that he has ever demonstrated violations of his rights on our part; rather, it is he who is under analysis for investigation and prosecution for violating the legal order of this territory, for usurpation of authority, and for attacking the existing form of governance; the corresponding administrative and legal bodies will handle this.THIRD FACT: Regarding the precautionary measures of the IACHR, it must be clear that said measures were not issued to protect this gentleman from the alleged aggressions he claimed to suffer, but were issued in favor of the entire indigenous people of Térraba. Here I want to state that the first to violate these measures was Mr. Nombre04 himself, who, with clearly anarchist behavior, with his disregard for this territorial authority and his acts of farm invasion, has put the entire indigenous community and beyond in grave danger. It has not been the organization I represent that has destabilized peace and security within this territory, but rather it has been this gentleman and his few associates, who, sheltered by apparent ethnic notions, claim to do and undo as they please and without any control within this territory; they aspire to be allowed to invade, take large amounts of land for themselves, rent them, sell them without any consideration, and cause environmental destruction that not only we as an indigenous people but humanity itself end up paying for.It is clear, the IACHR only listened to content in a brief probably drafted in San José or in some part of the world, blindly signed by a few of these gentlemen, including Mr. Nombre04; the IACHR has not provided a procedure to hear the true voices of your indigenous people of Térraba, since they only believe that it is we who request protection from the IACHR against this gentleman and those few who entrench themselves in concepts and suggestions non-existent within our people and who only seek to legitimize their perverse and illegal actions, clearly detrimental to the indigenous people of Térraba. No less important is to specify that the cited precautionary measures are not, as Mr. Nombre04 falsely and with ill intention makes them seem, destined in favor of the wrongly called by him Bröran people, since the text of the referred precautionary measure speaks rather of the Teribe indigenous people; here one only observes the wordplay and intentions of Mr.Nombre04 in now coming to say that we are no longer Térrabas, nor Teribes, but rather that now, because it occurs to him, we are Bröran. This is not so; it is clear that this gentleman, duly guided by voices external to this people, is led in his manifestations to create confusion and to attempt to distract this Court from the essential: respect for the legality and institutional framework that regulates us and guarantees our existence and identity. No less relevant is to make it seen that it has been the same indigenous people of Térraba and its indigenous local government, without support from the cited precautionary measures, who have had to focus on containing, even with force, these actions deployed by the plaintiff, and we are currently making enormous efforts to ensure that the courts of justice and State institutions help us regulate and contain these gentlemen in their predatory desires against our culture and their promotion of anarchy.It has been the people themselves who are already tired of them and therefore do not support them, and rather point to them as the direct persons responsible for the misfortunes we are experiencing in matters of governance, security, territorial sovereignty, and others. There is a legitimate recipient of the legal effects of these measures, which is the indigenous people of Térraba and its institutions, never these belligerent cells without foundation or any legitimacy; rather, the people themselves label them as antisocial and disruptors of peace and governance, and as anti-indigenous, who take advantage of conflict management to live off it, along with their national and international collaborators. It is clear that those of us at risk are the indigenous people of Térraba because of these alleged self-determined beneficiaries of these measures; it is they who, with their reckless actions contrary to legality, endanger themselves, their families, and the territorial integrity itself.In the coming days, we will be sending a parallel report to the IACHR on the background, the nature of the conflicts mentioned in its time within this territory, and the evolution this scenario has undergone, for the purpose of bringing to the IACHR’s attention that we, as an indigenous people, should have been consulted at that time before proceeding with the issuance of the granted measures; the reasonableness, proportionality, relevance, and legality thereof are diluted due to a lack of a comprehensive approach to the situation. I do not want to miss the opportunity to refer to Mr. Nombre04's statement that on November 24, 2024, several DINADECO officials, surely together with him, addressed the issue of implementing the IACHR precautionary measures. This is because I regret that a person like Mr. Nombre04 is the one representing the voice of the indigenous people of Térraba in these scenarios, as I reiterate that from the literal text of said document, it does not in any way emerge that Mr.Nombre04 is the recipient of these measures, but rather the indigenous people of Térraba, and as such has a legal representation to be heard in these spaces. Mr. Nombre04 has very skillfully made friends and strangers believe that these measures armor only him, and with that, he has been doing as he pleases with the system, but as I have already explained, we will take action to straighten out these procedures and ensure the voices of the indigenous people of Térraba are respected in all these spaces. FOURTH FACT: Regarding Case No. 14.026 before the IACHR, we are totally unaware of what this gentleman may have expressed or what they may have drafted for him, since likewise, to date, as an indigenous people, we are unaware of what this gentleman is saying about us before the IACHR. Wearily, this Mr. Nombre04 and his associates have discussed the issue of governance within this indigenous territory of Térraba, and the conclusion reached is the same: we govern ourselves through the most appropriate form for a people almost extinct in all its components.What Mr. Nombre04 does not say is that he was here in this ADI, along with his few followers, but because of his way of conducting governance for his benefit, the people took that power from them, and therefore, they now aspire not to an autochthonous governance, but one tailored to them, to govern as they please and according to their own interests. You cannot hide the sun with a finger; even so, as he himself reveals his intentions: he self-designates as Bröran, self-designates the Térraba indigenous people as Bröran, they unilaterally decide to invade farms, self-proclaim their own government, and involve themselves in national and international public spaces as representatives of this people. In short, what they seek is to be authorized to exercise command and government over the territory only because they say it should be so, not because the people decide it. What they seek is to be allowed, they few, to impose their will on the indigenous collective; they self-appoint as traditional authority among themselves, not before a general assembly of the indigenous people; and worst of all, they cultivate all these nefarious criteria under the shadow of national and international NGOs and mid-level officials of the Executive Branch and some public universities.What Mr. Nombre04 does not say is that what he defends as traditional structures or traditional authorities are those they self-appoint within the bosom of their own families and associates, not through a free and open consultation with the indigenous people. This gentleman invents a name for an organization, finds a few associates to sign for him, and now he already has a traditional organization that the State must recognize, and for that he invokes norms, conventions, customary law, the international community, and so on, but he NEVER invokes the voice of the indigenous people of Térraba, for he well knows his tricks and his moves to destabilize with a so-called customary law are known, concealing that it is a question of customary law, but his own, not that of the indigenous people of Térraba. FIFTH FACT: Regarding his inconsiderate treatment of his right to participate as a member of the Asociación de Desarrollo Integral Indígena de Térraba, I must indicate that the petitioner provides no evidence of his statement, and rather, it is we as the ADI who miss him in our work sessions and assemblies, as it is clear that we are an indigenous local government for its entire collective and not for a few.We have absolutely no written evidence from this gentleman proving that in the last ten years he has approached our board of directors to manage personal or collective projects or initiatives; nor do we have evidence that he has submitted an affiliation request, given that in any case, he has the right to appeal to Nombre03 to assert his rights. We have already addressed his dealings before Nombre03, and they have been resolved there, all under the same conditions as with each and every one of the indigenous people living in this territory. What happens is that Mr. Nombre04 wants to come to the ADI whenever he pleases and speak about his participation rights as he sees fit; someone has told him that just for supposedly being indigenous, he can do and undo with our territory. He believes that just as when he goes to the IACHR and many other spaces and they listen to everything he says, we here in the territory must also do so, and that is not the case.As a territory, we have minimum fundamental human rights, customary and institutional law, so here, this gentleman is not allowed to do things his way and as his small group that follows him allows him to. I want to make it clear that Mr. Nombre04 victimizes himself, indicating that everything he says we do against him is retaliation for being a dissident or opponent of the ADI figure; that is not true, we only comply with clear mandates and we do so without any distinction. It is the organization he is currently advancing that has confronted the very environment of the people. As this Court can see, here is the way this gentleman speaks, without evidence, without specifying incriminating conduct or behaviors clearly and precisely; he does not mention specific people whose rights would also have been injured; he speaks only in generic terms and as if he were the delegate, representative, or proxy of the people he mentions.This is how he works: he says he represents groups and a people self-called Bröran but provides no proof of his statement or his condition. Mr. Nombre04 also reveals a typical procedure that he and some of his followers follow, which is to personally attack the undersigned, because in reality, they cannot hide that the indigenous people who, by free will, support the undersigned and not them. Mr. Nombre04's statement that it was at my indication that he was ordered to vacate the premises where said assembly was being held is absolutely false; rather, it was a decision of the Board of Directors that was at the main table of the event. And here I must add that this attitude of Mr. Nombre04 of not abandoning this place in time was so ill-intentioned that what it possibly deliberately achieved was that we could not start the assembly on time, which later cost us its annulment, and with that, a waste of preparations, notices, transportation, food, and other things, as well as not having been able to have the annual work plan on time and being left without the 2% from Nombre03 for the year 2025.One concludes that this is not proper of a so-called human rights defender, because he well knew he was not a member of the organization, and yet he stubbornly decided to cause this setback that day, without caring about the collective interests that were being decided that day in that assembly. And regarding the fact that this Court has repeatedly ordered his affiliation, I stand by whatever evidence there may be, because it is clear that at least before this honorable Court, this gentleman is not going to come and expose whatever he pleases and be listened to, and even this disagreement was resolved before Nombre03 in its time. The self-victimization that Mr. Nombre04 engages in is clear, thinking, of course, that he is before the IACHR or other entities, since as far as we know, this gentleman has never presented us with a single request in which he has brought to our attention his struggles against the type of governance we have.Rather, at the judicial level, this gentleman has faced several legal proceedings where this ADI has been an interested procedural party, and in all cases, Mr. Nombre04 has not managed to incriminate this ADI in acts that compromise the legality of its actions; rather, it has been clear that the courts have been ruling against the interests that Mr. Nombre04 and some of his associates seek. That is, we as the ADI and I as president are not bothered at all that this gentleman does everything he does, because in the end, who does not forgive these behaviors and their consequences is the people themselves and the judicial arenas that have been ruling against him, where it has been revealed that at least the acts of farm invasion are openly illegal. He states that he has continuously made public denunciation of acts of corruption, administrative irregularities, and decisions against the collective rights of the so-called Bröran people; however, as I already said, this gentleman is accustomed in other scenarios to speak and be given attention, without presenting any evidence to support his statement.Here he only mentions alleged facts, but it is clear, perhaps this is not the venue for it, but he should at least be more serious and cite at least one specific case of each of the things he refers to. What this gentleman seeks is for us to end up telling him that it was very well done to have invaded farms, to have taken for himself the lands he wanted, to rent them, and to do and undo with the environment, and that, although it may have been approved in certain circles, the indigenous people of Térraba will never approve it, for the actions of this gentleman and his followers will never be valued as a responsible exercise of human rights defense. SIXTH FACT: Following the same irresponsible position, Mr. Nombre04 refers to the systematic conduct of the ADI and in particular of the undersigned, of supporting non-indigenous people who inhabit this territory in bad faith, according to his statement, but he does not provide a single name or specific case to support his claim; it is just learned and repeated rhetoric here and there, where in some cases that statement is almost taken as the word of God, and they listen to him and documents and actions are generated, but in many others, no. Because if he claims his stance as a human rights defender is responsible, he must know that he must prove his statement, and also that not only indigenous people have rights, but every human being.Mr. Nombre04 must know that it is not responsible to go invading farms through de facto means, and that this local government will never recognize or approve that; we are respectful of due process and the rule of law, and we trust that little by little the legal condition of each human being inhabiting this territory will be determined. If Mr. Nombre04 wants a Bröran indigenous territory, he must conceive it outside this Térraba indigenous territory, because here legality, due process, and the other democratic guarantees inherent to our constitutional pact are respected. The Bröran people that Mr. Nombre04 self-designates is only possible in his mind and that of some of his very few followers, and that will have the legal and cultural consequences that derive from it. Mr. Nombre04 forgets that the rights of autonomy, self-determination, and self-government that he supposedly professes empower the indigenous people to internally resolve the matters that form part of their daily life and that ensure the survival of our culture.Unlike the people of Mr. Nombre04 – Bröran – in this indigenous people of Térraba, decisions are made freely, openly, and participatively, by majorities. But it seems Mr. Nombre04 sees these principles as good for his Bröran people but does not see them as good for the Térraba indigenous people, and perversely seeks to distort our struggles and to violate the will of the indigenous people. SEVENTH FACT: Quite the opposite; under the cover of his claim of being responsible in his struggle, this gentleman states that the attendance signatures would be manipulated, all without providing any proof. It is just an extreme expression of his perverse use of the law, since at the administrative level, Nombre03 had knowledge of the minutes of that assembly and no illegality or fraudulent act is observed therein, as it is clear that for the collection of attendance signatures, sometimes the register is printed on the official sheets of the general assembly minute book and the attending person only stamps their signature, and on other occasions, like the present one, the work team writes down the name and identification number of the attendee, and this person only signs, so it is absolutely normal for there to be uniform handwriting types in said procedure.But what is lamentable here is that this comes from a person who decorates himself as a human rights defender and as almost the sole beneficiary of the IACHR measures, for it is truly an irresponsible and very unserious act, intended only to damage the good name and functioning of the ADI of Térraba. EIGHTH FACT: Regarding the right of use over the lands that have been invaded by these people, it is clear that they are in litigation processes, where civil and even criminal consequences will derive, and in this case, this ADI, by mandate of its assembly and by reasoned decision, will not allow or legitimize any usage right over them. It is clear that the presence of these people, including Mr. Nombre04, on those farms is in an irregular and precarious condition, permanently generating a hostile environment among themselves and their aspirants to recognition of possession, compensation, or expropriation rights; in addition to constant tension between these occupants and the rest of the indigenous people who reproach the conduct of these people for attempting to recover these lands and seize them by force, violating the right of the indigenous people to be part of their benefits.And lately, generating coexistence conflicts among themselves and between them and alleged damages to the environment and MINAE. Let this honorable Court note that these gentlemen seek to legitimize their act of invasion of a total of approximately 3,000 hectares, which they have distributed among themselves in large extensions under parameters imposed among them, from the strongest to the weakest, being that this area represents more than 30% of the total territory that would be left in the hands of at least 15 families, thereby threatening not only the essence of legality but also justice and access to land for the rest of the indigenous population. In this sector of invaded farms, these people privatized the entrances and even regulate transit on public roads, thereby preventing this local government from legally exercising its attributions as administrator and formal owner of the property and possession right.All this anarchy of status impedes the control and management of the environment and biodiversity of these farms, where the presence of cattle invades streams and pollutes water tributaries in the summer, and the felling of wood and extraction of huacas are done freely, only under the control of those who have access to those farms. Because of these events, we have a part of the territory that is lawless land, land of the strongest, of the most skillful, of the one who best manages to self-appoint as leader or authority among them. And this Court, in a case mentioned in several amparo petitions, ruled that on these farms, while their legal situation is not defined, the right does not permit the installation of public services of any nature, since this violates human rights and the rule of law. Once these farms are materially handed over to the ADI of Térraba as legally corresponds, it will be through internal mechanisms that their distribution to indigenous people who require it is resolved, and it will only then that the necessary endorsements and permits for the effective and legitimate right to land will be extended accordingly.Mr. Nombre04's intention to attack me is clear, for I am not the one who says anything about these farms; it is the indigenous people and the courts of justice and this very Court. The people do not forgive this way of exposing the lives of indigenous people through invasions; the courts have said that de facto means in these cases are acts contrary to the Law, and this Court has said that as long as these farms are in these legal conditions, the ADI should not grant any type of endorsements for public services to anyone. NINTH FACT: Regarding DINADECO's actions, I only must state that Mr. Nombre04 is unaware that the only legal link this institution has with our ADI is within the framework of Ley 3859 and that, regarding the functions of this ADI as an Indigenous Local Government, it has no interference. The exercise of the rights and duties we have as the Térraba indigenous people are not subject to the regulation, monitoring, and control of DINADECO, since in that field, the only thing we have is that these rights and duties will be exercised under the coordination and advice of the Comisión Nacional de Asuntos Indígenas.TENTH FACT: Mr. Nombre04 does not specify which are the parallel registers he claims exist; nor does he cite the people he involves as indigenous or non-indigenous, and even less does he specify where the legality of the Board of Directors or the undersigned lies based on the membership register. Now, because it suits his narrative, he comes to bring to the fore of this amparo the alleged legality and validity of the decree creating the Database, but he forgets to indicate to the Court that, due to inability, negligence, internal divisions within its own council of elders, and other reasons, the Tribunal Supremo de Elecciones has said that said Decree lost technical consistency and is not a guarantee for effective access to justice for the Térraba indigenous people. Here, Mr. Nombre04, very much in his style, seeks to convince the justices of this Court through words to I do not know what, because to come at this point to say that the Database must be respected is to affirm that something that no longer works should be applied, solely for the simple fact that he, he does not know how, but is on that list of indigenous people, without caring about the rights of the other indigenous people he claims to responsibly represent and defend.He expects the ADI to tell Nombre03 or a user who requests their affiliation that it cannot be done because the elders, who were not consulted by the indigenous people, do not want to assume a responsibility of such high magnitude, and because of internal disputes, they no longer want to update that Database, and that therefore, all their rights as a Térraba indigenous person are suspended. No, this ADI believes that given the most recent events regarding the Database, we must return to the procedure we already had endorsed by this Court and by the territory: to consider as a Térraba indigenous person that applicant whom one or more elders of the territory reasonably indicates to us is or is not indigenous, and proceed to resolve their affiliation request and other services. The human rights of the inhabitants of this Térraba indigenous people that Mr. Nombre04 claims to defend do not wait for these or those elders entrenched in their lawsuits and capricious internal differences to be resolved; these rights are not a commodity that an indigenous person must barter with this or that elder so they decide to work and assume their responsibilities.We cannot be subjecting indigenous people to the whims of some elders and others; these are regulated by laws and international conventions, not by decrees with clear political ambitions and clear economic roots. ELEVENTH FACT: Regarding the note he claims to have sent to Nombre03 and which they sent to us, I have no knowledge of its existence or receipt in our email, so we reserve the right to refer to this fact. And I clarify that, as far as possible and with conflicting opinions, we have tried in the past to comply with Nombre03’s mandate to disaffiliate and not affiliate people whom Nombre03 tells us are not in the DATABASE, because, as this Court will well know, incredibly, a DATABASE was imposed on us without consulting the indigenous people, and to which, even now, we do not have access. Nombre03 forced us, contrary to our bylaws, to disaffiliate a number of people without due process solely because they were not in the DATABASE, people who had been affiliated many years before the existence of said database, and questions the affiliation of people whom, although the internal bylaws do not prohibit, we cannot affiliate.
Mr. Nombre04, a human rights defender, promotes and wants this Chamber to rule in his favor through the following precarious procedure: by not having access to the Database, because the aforementioned DECREE so provides, this association, in order to guarantee the right of association, must receive the affiliation request, after some time the board of directors must meet and agree to send it to DINADECO, then in the time it takes the secretary of the Board of Directors to send it to Nombre03 either in person or by mail, after some time Nombre03 learns of that affiliation request and must resolve to consult the Supreme Electoral Tribunal to certify if the person appears registered in the Database, after some time the Supreme Electoral Tribunal conducts the investigation and resolves to notify Nombre03 that the person is or is not in the DATABASE, after some time Nombre03 resolves to inform the Board of Directors if the person is or is not in the Database, after some time the board of directors learns of that response and decides to affiliate if the person is in the Database or not to affiliate the applicant and to notify the user at its administrative offices.
As this distinguished Chamber can note, this is unbelievable; for all that procedural journey to occur can take months, as it is an unprecedented institutional exercise, and meanwhile the indigenous user is waiting for their affiliation in order to exercise their constitutional rights. And even worse, honorable magistrates, is to carry out the procedure to be included in this Database; add ten times more everything described and even then it will not be resolved because said procedure to become part of the Database is no longer possible as said Database has lost technical sustainability. TWELFTH: Mr. Nombre04 fails to prove before this instance, as is required, the specific facts on which the systematic aggression against his rights is based, and even less does he manage to prove that he is the only Térraba indigenous person covered by the IACHR precautionary measure, because as I have already stated, the indigenous people of Térraba are and continue to be victims of this man’s actions, to the clear detriment of their governance, access to land, the right to a healthy environment, and peace.
This whole process of self-victimization has brought him benefits, as he has had personal police surveillance 24 hours a day for many months, while the indigenous people were visited by the public force only in cases of emergency; he has access to large amounts of land with pre-existing crops that he uses for sales and rentals, while the indigenous people must work hard for their livelihood on limited areas of land; he goes from office to office proclaiming his indigenous identity, his victimization, and his sense of reproach against the people and their representative institutions, while the people struggle with lawsuits over land, organizations, economic resources, and peace; he is listened to and heard in his demonstrations, and orders, directives, and measures are issued, while the people beg for justice, for protection of their environment, their institutions, their biodiversity, and their culture.
Finally, I must reiterate that our records do not show that Mr. Nombre04 has been a member of this organization, as his attendance does not appear in the minutes of the general assemblies of the last 10 years, nor do we have an express affiliation request, nor do we have any ruling from this Chamber that has expressly ordered his affiliation to the organization; this man cites a ruling, but we cannot find his name and his identification number in it to individualize him and consider him the person ordered to be affiliated, so it is clear that he is not a member of this ADI. However, it is made known that we are not aware of the existence of any impediment for him to make the request in person at our offices on session days to give it the proper process. For all the foregoing, I request that this action be declared without merit in all its aspects concerning us (...)".
- 5By brief received via the Chamber's Online Management on September 24, 2025, the appellant refutes what was stated by the respondent authorities. He affirms that: "(...) The aforementioned report lacks factual and legal basis and, far from constituting a serious response to the facts denounced, becomes an instrument of institutional harassment. In effect, it seeks to deny my identity as a member of the Brörán People, to delegitimize my work as a human rights defender, to criminalize the peaceful land recoveries undertaken by my community, and to deny my status as a member, which has already been expressly recognized and protected by this Chamber through final resolutions. These assertions, lacking support and contrary to the procedural truth, cannot be considered a legitimate exercise of the right of defense. On the contrary, they constitute manifestations of institutional violence that seek to invisibilize, exclude, and re-victimize my person and, by extension, the Brörán People, reproducing the structural discrimination we have historically faced.FIRST. Regarding the denial of the belonging of the Nombre02 lineage to the Brörán People. The statement contained in the ADIT report, according to which the Nombre02 family lineage does not belong to the Brörán People, constitutes a serious act of institutional harassment that exceeds any procedural defense. It is an arbitrary denial of the identity of a family historically recognized as part of the Brörán People, which not only violates the right to self-identification but also constitutes a deliberate strategy to invisibilize an indigenous authority and weaken the legitimacy of their leadership. The Political Constitution, in its Article 33, enshrines equality before the law and prohibits all forms of discrimination. This Constitutional Chamber has repeatedly recognized that the ethnic and cultural identity of indigenous peoples enjoys reinforced protection and that it corresponds to the people themselves to determine their members.Likewise, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights has established that indigenous peoples have the right to preserve their institutions and customs without external interference. Similarly, Article 33 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) recognizes the right of indigenous peoples to determine their own identity and membership. These principles oblige both the State and its auxiliary entities to respect indigenous self-identification and to refrain from unilaterally and groundlessly questioning the belonging of persons or families to a community. The ADIT's statement lacks documentary support, contradicts the official records that include Mr. Nombre02 as a member of the community, and stands in open opposition to the Database recognized by the Costa Rican State itself. Moreover, doing so in an amparo proceeding constitutes a form of re-victimization, because it shifts the discussion about the violation of political rights toward an attempt to invalidate the very identity of the appellant and his family.The ADIT's argument is not a technical error or an administrative misunderstanding: it is a form of symbolic and institutional violence that seeks to delegitimize Mr. Nombre02 in his capacity as an indigenous authority and human rights defender. By denying the belonging of the Nombre02 lineage to the Brörán People, the ADIT seeks to construct a narrative of exclusion that places an entire family outside the framework of constitutional and inter-American protection, disregarding their historical role in community life and their inclusion in previous official lists. This strategy not only lacks legal support but also constitutes an act of ethnic discrimination that aggravates the risk situation previously recognized by the IACHR through MC 321/12. In sum, the ADIT's attempt to deny the belonging of the Nombre02 lineage to the Brörán People constitutes unacceptable harassment, incompatible with the constitutional and international principles that protect indigenous identity.It is a form of institutional violence that cannot go unnoticed by this Chamber, as it directly affects the dignity of the appellant, erodes the community cohesion of the Brörán People, and perpetuates a pattern of structural discrimination. SECOND. Regarding the delegitimization of the appellant's work as an indigenous defender. The ADIT's position, in denying and delegitimizing the role of Mr. Nombre02 as an indigenous authority and human rights defender, constitutes in itself a form of institutional violence that reproduces the structural discrimination against the Brörán People and contradicts national and international resolutions that recognize his work. The Inter-American Court of Human Rights has established that States must guarantee a safe and propitious environment for human rights defenders, refraining from obstructing or delegitimizing their work, and that the criminalization and stigmatization of indigenous leaders constitutes discrimination and violates their political rights.For its part, the Inter-American Commission, through Resolution 16/15 of April 30, 2015, expressly recognized the risk faced by Mr. Nombre02 in the context of territorial defense. Likewise, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on human rights defenders, Mary Lawlor, also documented that: 'Nombre02, a human rights defender from the same Brörán people as Mr. Nombre06, has also been intimidated and subjected to arson attacks that have yet to be investigated.' These international and national standards are binding for Costa Rica. The jurisprudence of this Chamber has indicated that the arbitrary exclusion of indigenous persons from participation spaces constitutes discrimination contrary to Article 33 of the Constitution, and that the defense of human rights requires reinforced guarantees against reprisals. Denying the indigenous defender status of Mr. Nombre02 is equivalent to invisibilizing a legitimate and recognized leadership and weakening the necessary guarantees for his work, which contravenes both the Constitution and the American Convention on Human Rights.The ADIT's report does not merely disregard the trajectory of Mr. Nombre02, but aims to nullify his voice as an indigenous defender. This attitude is not neutral: it constitutes an act of symbolic and institutional violence, as it seeks to delegitimize his role as a traditional authority and human rights defender in a context of previously recognized risk. It is inconceivable that, while the IACHR and the UN have urged the State to protect him, the ADIT adopts the opposite position, denying his status and perpetuating the structural exclusion of the Brörán People. This strategy not only exposes him to greater vulnerability but also weakens the effectiveness of international protection measures. In sum, the ADIT's refusal to recognize the work of Mr. Nombre02 as an indigenous defender cannot be interpreted as a mere procedural defense. It is, in itself, a form of institutional violence that reproduces the structural discrimination against the Brörán People and that violates the constitutional, inter-American, and universal standards that oblige the Costa Rican State to guarantee the work of human rights defenders.THIRD. Regarding the criminalization of peaceful land recoveries as a strategy of harassment. The position of the ADIT and certain state instances that classify the Brörán People's land recoveries as unlawful acts constitutes a form of criminalization incompatible with the Political Constitution and with international standards on indigenous peoples. Such an approach ignores that these recoveries are a legitimate mechanism of territorial defense in the face of state inaction in land recovery (saneamiento), and that they have been expressly recognized by the Attorney General's Office as non-criminal practices. Administrative Circular 13-ADM-2011 of the Attorney General's Office of the Republic established that land recoveries by indigenous peoples do not constitute any criminal offense, as they are restitution processes linked to the state obligation to guarantee the exclusive use of indigenous territories.This administrative directive responds to inter-American standards in the matter, specifically the standard of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, which establishes that when indigenous peoples are dispossessed of their lands, the lack of effective restitution mechanisms enables collective self-defense measures that cannot be treated as illegal. For its part, this Constitutional Chamber, in resolutions such as No. 2013-010540, has reiterated that the protection of indigenous peoples requires a reinforced approach of tutelage against acts of criminalization or repression. In this context, it is legally untenable for the ADIT, within the framework of its report, to try to present de facto recoveries as acts of criminal usurpation. That position not only disregards the Attorney General's Office Circular but also stands in open contradiction to inter-American and constitutional jurisprudence.The criminalization of the recoveries invisibilizes the structural nature of the dispossession—more than 80% of the Brörán territory occupied by non-indigenous persons—and shifts attention away from state non-compliance towards a narrative that presents the victims as offenders. The peaceful recoveries of the Brörán People are not arbitrary or isolated acts, but rather forced responses to institutional omission and complicity. They have arisen precisely because the ADIT has allowed and promoted the inclusion of non-indigenous persons on its list, has issued possession certifications to third parties outside the People, and has never guaranteed the evictions necessary to recover (sanear) the territory. Faced with this reality, the indigenous persons themselves have been compelled to defend their lands with their physical presence, taking extreme risks that have cost the lives of leaders like Sergio Rojas and Nombre06.In this context, criminalizing the recoveries is equivalent to blaming the victims of a dispossession that is a direct consequence of state omission and the ADIT's actions. Far from being crimes, they constitute legitimate acts of territorial defense that seek to preserve the cultural and spiritual life of the Brörán People in the face of the imminent loss of their territory. Consequently, the ADIT's narrative that criminalizes land recoveries not only lacks legal support but also constitutes in itself a form of institutional violence. This approach contradicts the Indigenous Law, the Attorney General's Office Circular, constitutional jurisprudence, and inter-American standards, configuring an act of structural discrimination that perpetuates the territorial dispossession of the Brörán People and places its defenders at greater risk. FOURTH. Regarding the falsity of the allegation of non-existence of affiliation and the contempt for constitutional resolutions.The ADIT's allegation, in the sense that Mr. Nombre02 has never been a member and that there has been no reinstatement order from this Chamber, constitutes a false assertion, lacking factual and legal support, and which configures an act of unacceptable harassment. Such a position contradicts final resolutions of this jurisdiction, the Association's own records, and the procedural truth established in the case file, configuring constitutional contempt and an attempt to mislead this Court. Resolution No. 2009-013994 expressly recognized Mr. Nombre02's status as a member and ordered his immediate reinstatement, which produced full legal effects. This Constitutional Chamber has repeatedly established that 'constitutional res judicata is absolute, non-revisable, and of mandatory and immediate compliance for all public and private authorities.' Likewise, this jurisdiction has warned that 'the non-observance of constitutional judgments constitutes contempt that incurs personal and objective responsibility of the recalcitrant authority.' Similarly, it has indicated that the Comprehensive Development Associations, as auxiliary entities of the State and administrators of public funds, exercise functions of public interest and are fully subject to the constitutionality block.By virtue of these rules, Mr. Nombre02's reinstatement was not an administrative eventuality but a firm constitutional mandate, duly notified and executed through his inclusion in the 2015 list prepared by the ADIT itself (2015 List, ANNEX 1), where he appears as a member enabled to participate in the assembly. To deny that affiliation today, with full knowledge that it existed and was recognized, does not constitute a simple error: it is an act of contempt that calls into question the ADIT's respect for constitutional supremacy. The seriousness of this conduct increases when it is verified that the current presidency of the ADIT is held by the same person who directed the Association at the time the 2009 resolution was issued, which rules out any allegation of ignorance and reveals a deliberate attitude of resistance. The ADIT's report incurs a double harm: on the one hand, it re-victimizes Mr.Nombre02 by disregarding his previously recognized and executed status, and on the other, it despises the binding force of this jurisdiction, attempting to reopen a debate already resolved in constitutional res judicata. This conduct is belied by reliable documentary evidence: the 2015 list (ANNEX 1) where Nombre02's affiliation appears and the current list (ANNEX 2) from which he has been improperly excluded. The comparison of both documents incontrovertibly demonstrates that this is not a case of non-existence, but of an arbitrary and legally improper disaffiliation. The ADIT's attitude, far from constituting ignorance, evidences a deliberate pattern of harassment and resistance against this Chamber. Consequently, the ADIT's allegation that Mr. Nombre02's affiliation never existed must be rejected outright. It not only contradicts reliable evidence (2015 list and current list, Annexes to this document) and final resolutions of this Chamber, but also constitutes an act of harassment and constitutional contempt that seriously violates the appellant's rights and the authority of the constitutional jurisdiction.Compliance with constitutional judgments is immediate, integral, and not subject to any reinterpretation (resolutions No. 2010-009890 and 2019-015032), so this Court must consider it proven that Mr. Nombre02 was a member, was reinstated by constitutional order, and was subsequently the object of an arbitrary and legally improper disaffiliation (...)".
- 6In the proceedings followed, the legal prescriptions have been observed.
Drafted by Magistrate Araya García; and,
Considering:
I.Preliminary issue. Regarding amparo appeals directed against private subjects, prior to the analysis on the merits concerning the alleged constitutional violation, it must be examined whether, in this specific case, one is or is not faced with any of the assumptions that make such an appeal admissible, and, if affirmative, to determine whether it is or is not admissible. The Law of Constitutional Jurisdiction in Article 57 indicates that the amparo appeal proceeds against the actions or omissions of subjects of private law, when these act or must act in the exercise of public functions or powers, or find themselves, de jure or de facto, in a position of power against which ordinary jurisdictional remedies are clearly insufficient or belated to guarantee the fundamental rights or freedoms referred to in Article 2, subsection a) of the same Law. In this case, if the appellant's claims are true, the Asociación de Desarrollo Integral of Térraba could be in a position of power, against which ordinary jurisdictional remedies could be insufficient to protect the fundamental rights of the protected party, which is why the appeal must be admitted for analysis by this Court.
II.Object of the appeal. The appellant claims to be an indigenous person of the Brörán people of Térraba. He alleges various violations, which he sets forth as follows: a) that he has been the object of repeated processes of arbitrary disaffiliation by the ADI of Térraba, without respect for due process and as a reprisal for his grounded opposition to said structure; a situation that occurred again on February 15, 2025, when he was prevented from fully participating in an extraordinary assembly. He adds that Nombre03 rejected his annulment action due to an alleged lack of standing, disregarding previous resolutions of this Chamber. b) He points out the existence of manipulation of lists and attendance records, as well as the use of a parallel list, contrary to the decree that formalizes the TSE Database. c) He requests that Executive Decree no. 8487 "Reglamento a la Ley Indígena" be declared invalid for contravening higher-ranking norms and the principle of pacta sunt servanda. He considers that such actions violate his fundamental rights and requests that the appeal be declared with merit.
III. Proven facts. Of importance for the decision of this matter, the following facts are considered duly demonstrated
- 1)On October 26, 1975, the Asociación de Desarrollo Integral de la Reserva Indígena de Térraba de Buenos Aires-Puntarenas was registered before Nombre03, registration code No. 1528, according to the Public Registry of Community Development Associations kept for this purpose by the Legal and Registry Directorate, under Volume: 5, Folio: 863, Entry: 1973 (see report of the director of DINADECO).
- 2)In 2017, a process of disaffiliation of Mr. Nombre01 was carried out by the Board of Directors of the Asociación de Desarrollo Integral de la Reserva Indígena de Térraba de Buenos Aires-Puntarenas, according to act no. 3 of June 4, 2017. Agreement ratified by the general assembly on August 6, 2017. Against said resolution, Mr. Nombre01 filed no ordinary appeal whatsoever, leaving what was resolved by the Legal and Registry Directorate of Nombre03 final and binding (see report of the director of DINADECO).
- 3)On February 15, 2025, a general assembly of members was held by the Asociación de Desarrollo Integral de Reserva Indígena de Térraba de Buenos Aires, registration code no. 1528 (see evidence provided to the case file).
- 4)On an undetermined date, the appellant and Mr. Arnoldo Gutiérrez Reyes filed annulment actions against the general assembly, for the following reasons: "(...) SECOND: That said documents mention some irregularities regarding the holding of the aforementioned general assembly of members, namely: ● Mr. Nombre04 indicates that he was prevented from participating with voice and vote, without any basis, thus violating his right as a member. ● Mr. Gutiérrez Reyes indicates that the notice of the call was not disseminated in the sectors of Crun Shurin, Cru Dubon, San Andrés, Catarata and Crun Yaigo. This prevented members of said communities who belong to the communal organization from participating in the assembly in question (...)" (see resolution no. DINADECO-DLR-RE-036-2025).
- 5)By resolution no. DINADECO-DLR-RE-036-2025 of 8:05 a.m. on April 3, 2025, the Legal and Registry Directorate of the National Directorate of Community Development of the Ministry of Governance and Police, resolved: "(...) The Legal and Registry Directorate, of the National Directorate of Community Development, in relation to and based on the stated facts and legal citations indicated, resolves: I. REJECT the annulment action filed by Mr. Nombre04 because said petitioner is not a member of the communal organization, lacking standing to file said annulment action. II. REJECT the annulment action filed by MR. ARNOLDO GUTIÉRREZ REYES, because he lacks standing to act on behalf of third parties. III. DECLARE the invalidity of the general assembly held on February fifteenth, two thousand twenty-five, by the ASOCIACIÓN DE DESARROLLO INTEGRAL DE RESERVA INDIGENA DE TÉRRABA DE BUENOS AIRES, registration code number 1528, as well as all its agreements subject to registration, by virtue of the fact that the start of the assembly event occurred after the period established by law to hold the assembly on second call, as indicated in considering III of this resolution.
IV. RECOMMEND that the board of directors present to the Registry Department of Nombre03 the letters of resignation of the persons who held the positions of treasury and membership III for their respective registration. V. MANAGE the call to a general assembly, whether through the oversight body, under the protection of the provisions of Article N° 53 of the Reglamento a la Ley N° 3859 "Sobre Desarrollo de la Comunidad", or through 10% of the members. Against this resolution, the ordinary appeals of revocation and appeal may be filed before this Legal and Registry Directorate, of the National Directorate of Community Development, in accordance with the provisions of the General Law of Public Administration, within a period of three business days, counted from its respective notification. The Appeal for Revocation will be resolved by this Legal and Registry Directorate, and the Appeal will be resolved by the National Directorate of Nombre03 (...)" (see resolution no. DINADECO-DLR-RE-036-2025).
- 6)Nombre03 does not have the competence to intervene in the affiliation processes of the indigenous territory of Térraba, it being the responsibility of the ADI of Térraba to receive the affiliation requests, with the endorsement of the councils of Elders of Térraba and Bröran, who determine if the applicants are descendants of the Teribe/Térraba indigenous ethnic group, in accordance with the provisions of Executive Decree No. 41903-MP of August 8, 2019, called Officialization of the Database of Persons of the Térraba/Brörán Ethnicity as a Consultation Mechanism for the Public Administration and its Declaration of National Interest, which for what is of interest provided in Article No. 1, the following: "The Database of Persons of the Térraba/Brörán Ethnicity, held by the Civil Registry of the Supreme Electoral Tribunal—hereinafter Civil Registry—, is officialized for use by the Public Administration, as a mechanism for consultation and verification of information related to the identity of indigenous Térraba/Brörán persons."
IV. Unproven facts. Of relevance for resolving this amparo appeal, the following is considered unproven
- 1)After the disaffiliation of the appellant in 2017, he requested his affiliation before the Asociación de Desarrollo Integral de Reserva Indígena de Térraba de Buenos Aires (the case file).
- 2)The Asociación de Desarrollo Integral de Terraba has excluded legitimately registered indigenous persons from the official TSE database or has included non-indigenous persons who do not appear in the official database (the case file).
V.In the sub lite, the appellant files an amparo appeal and claims to be an indigenous person of the Brörán people of Térraba. Regarding his first allegation, he maintains that he has been the object of repeated processes of arbitrary disaffiliation by the ADI of Térraba, without respect for due process and as a reprisal for his grounded opposition to said structure. He indicates that this situation occurred again on February 15, 2025, when he was prevented from fully participating in an extraordinary assembly. Likewise, he points out that Nombre03 rejected his annulment action due to an alleged lack of standing, in contravention of previous resolutions of this Chamber.
From the report rendered under oath by the Director of Nombre03, it is verified that, in 2017, a process of disaffiliation of Mr. Nombre01 was carried out by the Board of Directors of the Asociación de Desarrollo Integral de la Reserva Indígena de Térraba de Buenos Aires–Puntarenas, as recorded in act no. 3 of June 4, 2017. Said agreement was ratified by the General Assembly on August 6, 2017. Against that resolution, Mr. Nombre01 filed no ordinary appeal, leaving what was resolved by the Legal and Registry Directorate of DINADECO final and binding.
It is also verified that on February 15, 2025, a general assembly of members of the Asociación de Desarrollo Integral de la Reserva Indígena de Térraba was held. On an unspecified date, the appellant and Mr. Arnoldo Gutiérrez Reyes filed annulment actions against said assembly, alleging: "(...) SECOND: That said documents mention some irregularities regarding the holding of the aforementioned general assembly of members, namely: ● Mr. Nombre04 indicates that he was prevented from participating with voice and vote, without any basis, thus violating his right as a member. ● Mr. Gutiérrez Reyes indicates that the notice of the call was not disseminated in the sectors of Crun Shurin, Cru Dubon, San Andrés, Catarata and Crun Yaigo. This prevented members of said communities who belong to the communal organization from participating in the assembly in question (...)".
As a consequence, through resolution no.
DINADECO-DLR-RE-036-2025 of 8:05 a.m. on April 3, 2025, the Legal and Registry Directorate of the National Directorate of Community Development resolved: “(…) I. REJECT the nullity action (acción de nulidad) filed by Mr. Nombre04 because said petitioner is not a member of the community organization, lacking standing (legitimación) to file said nullity action (…)”.
Although this Chamber has reviewed, in other matters, disenrollment (desafiliación) processes in indigenous associations where due process was not respected, in the present case we are faced with a disagreement regarding the exercise of a right that belongs solely to the members. It is on record that the petitioner has not been part of the association for eight years and that, during that period, he did not file any action to challenge or reverse his disenrollment (desafiliación). In other words, the petitioner seeks to speak at an assembly of which he has not been a member for more than eight years, with no evidence that he previously exercised any claim mechanism in this regard.
VI.Furthermore, the appellant alleges the existence of manipulation of voter rolls (padrones) and attendance lists, as well as the use of a parallel roll (padrón), in contravention of the decree that formalizes the TSE Database. However, this is a generic and abstract claim, since it merely asserts that the respondent association excludes legally registered indigenous persons in the official database of the Supreme Electoral Tribunal who request membership, and, at the same time, includes non-indigenous persons who are not in that database; however, it does not provide the identity of specific persons affected by such alleged practices.
This Chamber has reiterated that the purpose of the amparo appeal (recurso de amparo) is to provide timely protection against individualized violations or threats to fundamental rights, and not to challenge situations of a general or abstract nature. The petitioner's claim lacks a personal and direct injury arising from the facts he questions, which is why it is completely generic. Judicial protection is not aimed at abstractly remedying states of general dissatisfaction. By virtue of the foregoing, the amparo appeal (recurso de amparo) is inadmissible on this ground.
VII.Finally, the petitioner requests that Executive Decree No. 8487, "Regulation to the Indigenous Law" (“Reglamento a la Ley Indígena”), be declared invalid for allegedly contravening higher-ranking norms and the principle of pacta sunt servanda. However, in the processing of this amparo, the existence of a relationship between said regulation and the specific facts raised by the appellant is not proven, nor is it explained how its application would have affected the alleged violation reported. In the absence of a causal connection between the regulation in question and the situation subject to the appeal, it is not appropriate to grant the deadline to file an unconstitutionality action (acción de inconstitucionalidad).
VIII.Documentation provided to the case file. The party is warned that, if having provided any paper document, as well as objects or evidence contained in any additional electronic, computer, magnetic, optical, telematic device or one produced by new technologies, these must be withdrawn from the office within a maximum period of 30 business days counted from the notification of this judgment. Otherwise, all material not withdrawn within this period will be destroyed, as provided in the “Regulation on Electronic Case Files before the Judiciary” (“Reglamento sobre Expediente Electrónico ante el Poder Judicial”), approved by the Full Court in session No. 27-11 of August 22, 2011, article XXVI and published in the Judicial Bulletin (Boletín Judicial) number 19 of January 26, 2012, as well as in the agreement approved by the Superior Council of the Judiciary, in session No. 43-12 held on May 3, 2012, article LXXXI.
Therefore (Por tanto):
The appeal (recurso) is declared without merit.- Fernando Castillo V.
President Fernando Cruz C.
Paul Rueda L.
Luis Fdo. Salazar A.
Jorge Araya G.
Anamari Garro V.
Ingrid Hess H.
1 It is a faithful copy of the original - Taken from Nexus.PJ on: 05-08-2026 12:09:01.