From Recognition to Transformation: Strengthening GenderBased Violence Reparations through DecolonialIntersectionality in the Inter-American Court of Human Rights

Abstract

This thesis critically examines the reparation practices of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACtHR) in cases of gender-based violence, through the analysis of two emblematic cases: Cotton Field v. Mexico (2009) and Manuela et al. v. El Salvador (2021). The study aims to assess the advances and limitations of the Court’s reparation model, particularly regarding its capacity to address the structural and systemic dimensions of violence against women in contexts marked by multiple vulnerabilities. It proposes the adoption of a decolonial-intersectional framework — one that recognizes how historical power relations, inherited from colonialism, continue to shape the material and symbolic realities of women and other marginalized groups. This approach challenges dichotomous analytical categories, advocating instead for a relational reading of oppression that reveals the interconnections between race, gender, class, and territory, and how they produce specific forms of exclusion. Drawing on a qualitative methodology and case study analysis, the research finds that while the IACtHR has made important strides toward transformative reparations — moving beyond traditional, individual-focused measures — significant challenges remain. The Court continues to struggle with fully incorporating structural dimensions of oppression into its reparatory measures, particularly regarding the intersection of gender, race, and class. Ultimately, the analysis demonstrates that integrating a decolonial-intersectional perspective provides critical tools to unveil the historical and systemic inequalities that shape victims' experiences and offers a more robust diagnostic foundation for reparation efforts aimed at structural transformation.