30. With respect to the exhaustion of remedies and the length of imprisonment, the
Commission notes that Honduran legislation, as the government indicates, does not permit a
person to be released from prison if he is being processed for crimes such as those of which
Mr. López is charged. Therefore, consistent with Article 46(1)(a), the petitioners are exempt
from exhausting the remedies of internal jurisdiction.
b.
Time limit for submission
31. Article 46(1)(b) establishes that one of the requirements of admissibility for a petition is
that it must be "lodged within a period of six months from the date on which the party alleging
violation of his rights was notified of the final judgment".
32. Article 46(2) of the American Convention establishes that the provision of Article 46(1()(b)
will not apply when: a) the domestic legislation of the State concerned does not afford due
process of law for the protection of the right or rights that have allegedly been violated; b) the
party alleging violation of his rights has been denied access to the remedies under domestic
law or has been prevented from exhausting them; or c) there has been unwarranted delay in
rendering a final judgment under the aforementioned remedies.
33. In the case in question, fulfillment of the requisite established in Article 46(1)(b) of the
American Convention is related to the application of the exceptions to domestic remedy
exhaustion established in the Convention, as discussed in the previous paragraphs.
34. Therefore, the Commission finds that the petition is not subject to the requirement of
Article 46(1)(b) of the Convention, and that it has been presented within a reasonable time
limit.
c.
Duplication of proceedings and judgments
35. Articles 46(1)(c) and 47(d) of the Convention establish as requirements of admissibility
that the subject of the petition or communication is not pending in another international
proceeding for settlement and that it is not substantially the same as one previously studied by
the Commission or by another international organization.
36. The file does not suggest that the petition is pending settlement in another international
proceeding, or that it is substantially the same as one previously examined by the Commission
or by another international organization.
37. The Commission therefore includes that the requirements established in Articles 46(1)(c)
and 47(d) of the Convention have been met.
d.
Characterization of the alleged acts
38. Article 47(b) of the Convention establishes that any petition will be inadmissible if it “does
not state facts that tend to establish a violation of the rights guaranteed by this Convention”.
39. The Commission considers that the Petitioner's allegations, if proven, could characterize a
violation of the rights guaranteed in Articles 7, 8, 25 and 24 of the Convention, taken in
concordance with Article 1(1) of that international instrument.
40. The Commission therefore considers that the requirements of Article 47(b) and (c) of the
American Convention are satisfied.
V.
CONCLUSIONS
41. The Commission concludes that it has competence to hear the complaint submitted by the
Petitioner, and that the petition is admissible in accordance with Articles 46 and 47 of the
Convention.
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