The Inter-American Commission of Human Rights refers case of discrimination based on disability in the context of public elections against Costa Rica to the Inter-American Court

On 24th March, after assessing the admissibility of the case, the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights decided to transfer the case of Luis Fernando Guevara Díaz to the Inter-American Court. The commission concluded that Mr. Guevara’s claims that he suffered discrimination in the context of a public election to occupy a position at the Ministry of Finance were valid. The Commission’s investigations concluded that Mr. Guevara had been appointed to occupy a position of miscellaneous worker at the Ministry of Finance in June 2001, but he needed to participate in a competition to fill the position. Despite the formal notification that informed him he had lost the running for the position, Mr. Guevara indicated that this was due to a report from the Ministry of Finance that rejected him based on “his problems of retardation and emotional block”. The State answered that the selection process did not this report into consideration, and added that it has discretionary powers to pick any of the candidates, regardless of their personal features. For further information, please check: https://www.oas.org/en/IACHR/jsForm/?File=/en/iachr/media_center/PReleases/2021/084.asp