In an unprecedented event for the world, the official drawing of indigenous peoples to be included in the official list of indigenous juries was held in the province of Chaco, Argentina.
Chaco's civil and criminal jury trial laws mandate that all twelve jurors must be indigenous people when the accused, defendant, and victim are also indigenous. When only the accused or defendant is indigenous, six of the jurors must also be indigenous.
The Ministry of Government held this historic event for the Chaco justice system. Although jury law 2364-A, which includes indigenous juries, was enacted in 2015, it had not been implemented until now; it lacked of an essential requirement: free, and informed consultation with indigenous peoples, as guaranteed by the National Constitution and international treaties of human rights.
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Minister of Government Jorge Gómez |
This breakthrough took ten years of patient consultation and was made possible through a sustained dialogue with indigenous communities, culminating in the Intercultural Assembly held in the town of Juan José Castelli, the gateway to the world-famous El Impenetrable Rainforest, home to nearly 200,000 indigenous people.
Representatives of the three officially recognized indigenous peoples in the Chaco province -Qom, Wichí and Moqoit- participated, and gave their full approval to trial by jury.
This represents a key step forward in the recognition and effective guarantee of the collective rights of indigenous communities.
A few months ago, the unexpected happened: before having this process finished, there was already a first all-indigenous trial in the Impenetrable. This had a huge worldwide impact, to the point that it was covered by the national and international press(Spanish) (English) (Portuguese) (Italian) (French) (German).
But why this happened before the implementation? it was only because after the voir dire, the parties excluded the whites with their challenges and twelve indigenous Qom and Wichí jurors were selected randomly.
The purpose of the drawing was to integrate the annual pool of potential jurors, composed exclusively of members of indigenous communities, to serve in criminal or civil cases involving members of those communities, either as victims, plaintiffs or defendants. This consolidates an intercultural justice approach, marking a turning point in the judicial history of juries in the country and around the world.
Beyond the legal aspect, the implementation of the indigenous jury trial represents a profound cultural shift. For the first time, twelve members of Indigenous communities will be called upon to decide, with complete autonomy, the guilt or innocence of a person in serious criminal cases or liability and damages in civil cases. This policy fullfills the principles of equality before the law and access to culturally appropriate justice.
Minister of Government Jorge Gómez emphasized, "Surely, with the passage of time, we will be able to say that we were part of this historic process."
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Justice Emilia Valle, president of the State Supreme Court |
At the close of the day, the president of the Superior Court of Justice and ardent promoter of the jury system in the country, Emilia Valle, highlighted the institutional significance of the event: "It's been almost six years since the first general draw, which took place on August 7, 2019. Today we take a new step toward a more participatory justice system, with a sense of belonging and social legitimacy."
This model not only expands the guarantees enshrined in the Constitution, but also opens the door to a more vibrant, diverse, and deeply representative justice system, in line with the universal ideals of human rights.
With this momentous step, Chaco is firmly weaving the dream of a truly intercultural justice system, where every voice, regardless of origin, is heard and respected. A justice system that recognizes the richness of diversity and embraces equity as a beacon, so that everyone can participate and be judged in a space of mutual respect, dignity, and belonging.
The lottery consisted of the mechanical extraction of two-digit numbers, corresponding to the last two digits of the National Identity Document (DNI) of indigenous citizens included in the current electoral roll. These numbers determine the base list of potential jurors in judicial districts I through VI.
In addition to the president of the Supreme Court of Justice (STJ), Emilia María Valle, the following were also present: Justice Víctor Del Río; the head of the Chaco Legislature, Carmen Delgado, along with her peers Maida With and Dorys Arkwright; Jorge Gómez, Minister of Government; the Secretary General of the Government, Carolina Meiriño; the General Government Advisor, María Alejandra Ferreira; the presidents Adrián Veleff (Ecom Chaco) and Lucas Apud Masin (Chaco Lottery); members of Indigenous communities, and provincial officials.
Meanwhile, the head of the Jury Trial Central Office, Fernanda Diez, and the co-head of the Jury Trial Central Office, María Graciela Serial, attended as observers from the Chaco Lottery hall, along with the presidents Fabiana Bardiani (Judges' Association), Florencia Ávila (Second District Bar Association), Cecilia Arroyo (Third District Bar Association), Ivana Valverde (Fourth District Bar Association), and the head of the Resistencia Bar Association, José Galassi.
The draws for the First, Second, and Fifth Districts included 552 Qom citizens; the Second District included 184 Moqoit citizens; the Third Judicial District included 276 Moqoit citizens; the Fourth Judicial District included 184 Moqoit citizens; and the Sixth Judicial District included 414 Qom citizens and 276 Wichí citizens.
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