2 competent jurisdiction, from being carried into effect and declared that it was at liberty to carry out the death sentences according to its domestic laws; and d) according to the Commission´s request, the executions of the five alleged victims are planned for June 1998. 4. The working agenda of the Court, according to which the XL Regular Session will be held from June 8 to 19, 1998, at its seat in San Jose, Costa Rica. CONSIDERING: 1. That Trinidad and Tobago has been a State Party to the American Convention since May 28, 1991, and that it accepted the jurisdiction of the Court on the same day. 2. That Article 63(2) of the Convention provides that: [i]n cases of extreme gravity and urgency, and when necessary to avoid irreparable damage to persons, the Court shall adopt such provisional measures as it deems pertinent in matters it has under consideration. With respect to a case not yet submitted to the Court, it may act at the request of the Commission. 3. That the State´s failure to respond to the Commission´s request to adopt precautionary measures in the five cases is an exceptional circumstance which has led the Commission to submit the present request to the Court. 4. That, according to the allegations of the Commission, it has not had the opportunity to examine the complaints. Consequently, the situation as described by the Commission in its request constitutes a prima facie case of extreme gravity and urgency which could result in irreparable damage to persons. 5. That Article 25(4) of the Rules of Procedure provides that: [i]f 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 subsequently ordered by the Court at its next session. 6. That the execution of the death penalty in the cases of the five petitioners would necessarily affect the Court´s consideration of the Commission´s request, by rendering moot the object of any eventual decision in their favor. It is imperative to note that this does not imply a declaration on the merits of the request, but simply acknowledges the possibility of such a decision, which leads to the conclusion that the stay of the executions of the petitioners is necessary to guarantee the integrity of the Inter-American system for the protection of human rights. 7. That the cases included in the Commission’s request have not been submitted to the Court, and, therefore, any consideration given will not imply a decision on (1) the merits of the existing controversy between the Commission and the State and (2) the interpretation of the Convention and its relationship with the Constitution of Trinidad and Tobago. Thus, by adopting urgent measures, this Presidency is only ensuring that the Court may carry out effectively its conventional mandate.