Part II Means of Protection, Ch.VII Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, s.2 Functions, Article 41

This chapter describes Article 41 of the American Convention on Human Rights (ACHR). Article 41 of the ACHR establishes the main function of the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights as “to promote respect for and defense of human rights.” Within that mandate, the Commission is entrusted with specific powers. Article 41 lists these seven main functions and powers, which are quite broad and go far beyond the functions that could have been attributed to a treaty body. Indeed, Article 41 is similar in content to Article 18 of the Statute of the Inter-American Commission, which determines the Commission's powers with respect to all members of the Organization of American States.