16 23. The documents filed by the State and the representatives at the public hearing held in the instant case. CONSIDERING: 1. That Venezuela is a State Party to the American Convention since August 9, 1977 and, pursuant to Article 62 of said Convention, it recognized the jurisdiction of the Court on June 24, 1981. 2. That Article 63(2) of the Convention establishes that “[i]n cases of extreme gravity and urgency, and when necessary to avoid irreparable damage to persons,” the Court may, at the request of the Commission, adopt such measures as it deems pertinent in matters that have not yet been submitted to its consideration. 3. That in this regard, Article 25 of the Rules of Procedure provides as follows: [...] 2. 2. With respect to matters not yet submitted to it, the Court may act at the request of the Commission; [...] 5. If the Court is not sitting, the President, in consultation with the Permanent Commission and, if possible, with the other judges, shall call upon the government concerned to adopt such urgent measures as may be necessary to ensure the effectiveness of any provisional measures that may be ordered by the Court at its next session. 6. The beneficiaries of provisional measures or urgent measures ordered by the President may address their comments on the report made by the State directly to the Court. The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights shall present observations to the State’s report and to the observations of the beneficiaries or their representatives. 4. That the purpose of provisional measures in the domestic legal systems (domestic law of procedure) generally, is to preserve the rights of the parties during the dispute, ensuring that the execution of the judgment on the merits is not impaired or obstructed by the actions of the parties, pendente lite. 5. That in the International Human Rights Law, the provisional measures not only have a preventive nature, as they preserve a certain legal status, but also –and mainly- a protective nature, since they protect human rights as long as they are intended to prevent irreparable damage to persons. Provided the basic requirements of extreme seriousness and urgency, and the prevention of irreparable damage to persons are met, provisional measures are an effective judicial guarantee with preventive nature. 6. That Article 1(1) of the Convention sets forth the general obligation of the State Parties to respect the rights and freedoms enshrined in said Convention and to guarantee their free and full enjoyment by any person under its jurisdiction. 7. That the Court is not trying the merits of the case that gave rise to these provisional measures, and the issuance of provisional measures does not involve a decision on the merits of the dispute existing between petitioners and the State. In ordering provisional measures, the Court is only exercising its powers under the