on which this authority based herself to take her decision to be known.
A.3. Political rights
65. The Commission indicated that, in its case law, the Court had indicated that, when a
judge’s tenure was arbitrarily impaired, the right to have access to and remain in public office,
under general conditions of equality established in Article 23(1)(c) was violated. It argued that
this standard was also applicable to prosecutors, in light of the necessary application to them
of the guarantee of enhanced stability. It indicated that the presumed victim was removed
from office by a procedure that did not comply with the required minimum guarantees, so that
it also violated his right to have access to and remain in public office under general conditions
of equality. The presumed victim’s representative did not present arguments on this point.
66. The State argued that, in the case of Mr. Casa Nina, the conditions of equality in access
to public office had been met, and his designation concluded owing to the needs for the service
and not as a result of a disciplinary proceeding in which due process had been violated;
therefore, there had been no violation of the rights recognized in Article 23(1)(c) of the
Convention in relation to Article 1(1) of this instrument.
A.4. Right to work
67. The presumed victim argued that the Peruvian Constitution recognized that work was
a right, so that workers were protected on different levels, and this included the right to job
stability. He indicated that the Constitutional Court had affirmed that, in the case of an
“indeterminate employment relationship, a person may only be dismissed owing to due cause,
duly verified.” He added that the Prosecutor General had violated his right to work because
she had removed him from the function that he had been performing without any reason.
Notwithstanding the considerations regarding the preliminary objection filed by the State
(supra paras. 22, 23 and 25), neither the Commission nor the State presented substantive
allegations in relation to the presumed victim’s arguments.
B. Considerations of the Court
68. In light of the meaning and conclusions of the arguments submitted by the parties and
the Commission, it is essential, first, to clarify the recognition to prosecutors of the specific
guarantees for judges, and then examine all the arguments submitted in this regard.
B.1. Specific guarantees to safeguard judicial independence and their
applicability to prosecutors owing to the nature of their functions
69. In order to examine this matter, the Court will base itself on three premises: (i) the
State’s duty to ensure the provision of judicial services; (ii) the fundamental need that those
who intervene in the provision of such services are tenured officials, with pre-established
causes for removal or dismissal, and (iii) in exceptional cases in which the designation of
provisional officials is required, the appointment, permanence and termination of the exercise
of the function is subject to predetermined conditions (infra para. 81). Regarding the latter,
in the case of Martínez Esquivia v. Colombia, this Court concluded that the guarantee of
stability and irremovability of judges, for the purpose of safeguarding their independence, was
applicable to prosecutors owing to the nature of their functions. 44 The Court will refer to its
considerations in that case below.
Cf. Case of Martínez Esquivia v. Colombia. Preliminary objections, merits and reparations. Judgment of October
6, 2020. Series C No. 412, paras. 95 and 96.
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