Configuración dogmática de la esclavitud moderna en el Ecuador: Un análisis constitucional tras el Caso Furukawa

Abstract

Modern slavery does not require iron chains, but rather subordination mechanisms that completely nullify freedom. Based on this premise, this research examines the dogmatic-constitutional configuration of these practices in Ecuador, focusing on Judgment 1072-21-JP/24 of the Furukawa Case. The main objective was to determine how the Constitutional Court integrated international standards to redefine serfdom when it is concealed under apparent civil contracts. Through a legal-dogmatic and documentary analysis, the study demonstrates that the presumption of legality in private law is dismantled in the face of factual coercion. Specifically, it was identified that the corporation exercised true “attributes of ownership” over the abaca workers through three mechanisms: geographical confinement, intergenerational labor appropriation, and economic asphyxiation. The ruling establishes a vital precedent by applying the horizontal efficacy of fundamental rights, holding the corporate actor directly responsible. In conclusion, this work strongly supports the court's decision to subject civil law rules to the unrenounceable filter of human rights. Finally, the study highlights the need to direct future research toward the challenges of comprehensive reparation, preventing corporate maneuvers from guaranteeing impunity.