Vulneración de los derechos constitucionales, en el caso Míguez contra IESS.

Abstract

The case of Rita Míguez, who filed a protective action against the Ecuadorian Social Security Institute (IESS) for the violation of her constitutional rights and the consequent denial of her survivor's pension benefits following the death of her spouse in 2020, demonstrates the State's ineffectiveness in protecting fundamental human rights and its failure to fulfill its constitutional obligations. The denial, based on a biased social report and dismissive administrative decisions, caused Míguez material and non-material damages. This case is examined in terms of constitutional law and emphasizes the application of the Internal Regulations of the Transitional Regime of the IESS's Disability, Old Age, and Death Insurance. The key rights under discussion include equality before the law, non-discrimination, due process, and the guarantee of effective judicial protection, all of which are stipulated in the Constitution and developed by the Constitutional Court in its jurisprudence. In 2015, ruling 164-15-SEP-CC had already made something much clearer: a survivor's pension cannot be denied based on a report lacking any serious basis. Furthermore, compensatory measures were demanded precisely because due process and the right to genuine judicial protection were violated. What happened to Miguez presents a very similar pattern. Both the actions of the Ecuadorian Social Security Institute (IESS) and the appellate court's decision disregarded his fundamental constitutional rights. This creates a scenario of inequality and, in practice, a form of intersectional discrimination that is exacerbated by the circumstances of the case.