II PROCEEDINGS BEFORE THE COURT 6. Notification to the State and to the representatives. The submission of the case was notified to the State of Guatemala and to the representatives of the alleged victims in communications dated January 25, 2018. 7. Brief with pleadings, motions and evidence. On March 23, 2018, the Centro para la Acción Legal en Derechos Humanos (hereinafter “the representatives”) presented their brief with pleadings, motions and evidence (hereinafter “pleadings and motions brief”) pursuant to Articles 25 and 40 of the Court’s Rules of Procedure. The representatives agreed with the Commission’s allegations. In addition, they asked that the Court order the State to adopt various measures of reparation and for reimbursement of certain costs and expenses. 8. Answering brief. On June 27, 2018, the State forwarded to the Court its brief with a preliminary objection and its answer to the submission of the case by the Commission, as well as with its observations on the pleadings and motions brief (hereinafter “answering brief”).5 In this brief, the State filed a preliminary objection and contested the alleged violations and the requests for measures of reparation by the Commission and the representatives. 9. Observations on the preliminary objection. On July 26 and August 6, 2018, the representatives and the Commission, respectively, presented their observations on the preliminary objection. 10. Public hearing. On August 7, 2018, the President issued an order calling the parties and the Commission to a public hearing on the preliminary objection and eventual merits, reparations and costs, in order to receive the final oral arguments of the parties and the final oral observations of the Commission on those issues.6 In addition, in this order, one alleged victim proposed by the representatives was called to testify during the public hearing and one witness was required to provide his statement by affidavit. The representatives submitted the affidavit on August 16, 2018. The public hearing took place on August 27, 2018, during the fifty-ninth special session of the Court held in San Salvador, El Salvador.7 During this hearing, the Court’s judges asked the State and the Commission to provide specific information and explanations. 11. Amicus curiae. On September 11, 2018, the Court received an amicus curiae brief presented by Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights, the Center for Human Rights and Democracy in Africa, the Centre for Strategic Litigation, the Freedom of Expression Hub, and the Institute for Human Rights and Development in Africa.8 12. Final written arguments and observations. On September 25 and 27, 2018, the representatives and the State, respectively, presented their final written arguments together The State appointed as its agents: Jorge Luis Borrayo Reyes, President of the Presidential Human Rights Commission (hereinafter “COPREDEH”) and Felipe Sánchez González, Executive Director of COPREDEH. 5 Cf. Case of Gómez Virula et al. v. Guatemala. Call to a hearing. Order of the President of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights of August 7, 2018. Available at: http://www.corteidh.or.cr/docs/asuntos/ gomezvirula_07_08_18.pdf 6 At this hearing there appeared: (a) for the Inter-American Commission: Luis Ernesto Vargas Silva, Second Vice President of the Commission, and Silvia Serrano Guzmán and Christian González Chacón, legal advisers; (b) for the representatives of the alleged victims: Juan Francisco Soto Forno and Hugo René Morales Díaz, Lawyers at the Centro para la Acción Legal en Derechos Humanos, and (c) for the State of Guatemala: Felipe Sánchez González, Executive Director of COPREDEH; Lourdes Woolfolk Contreras, Director for Monitoring International Human Rights Cases; Eduardo Bran Paz, Legal Adviser, Directorate for Monitoring International Human Rights Cases, and Carla Gabriela Morales Ramírez, Director, Directorate of Mechanisms for Human Rights Defenders, COPREDEH. 7 The brief was signed by Julia York, Angelita Baeyens, Felix Nkongho, Benedict Ishabakaki, Catherine Anite and Gaye Sowe. It emphasized that trade unionists are human rights defenders and that the right to freedom of association (Article 16 of the American Convention) is an essential element of democracy. 8 4