42
VIII
FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH THE GENERAL DUTIES CONTAINED IN ARTICLES 1(1) AND 2 OF
THE AMERICAN CONVENTION (OBLIGATION TO RESPECT RIGHTS AND OBLIGATION TO
ADOPT DOMESTIC LEGAL REMEDIES) AND VIOLATIONS OF ARTICLES 8 AND 25 THEREOF
(RIGHT TO A FAIR TRIAL AND RIGHT TO JUDICIAL PROTECTION)
83.
84.
Arguments of the Commission
a)
denial of justice in detriment of the next of kin of Mr. AlmonacidArellano derives from the enforcement of the self-amnesty Decree Law
issued during the military dictatorship as self-pardon for the benefit of
its members. The State has held this law in force after the ratification
of the American Convention; in turn, the Chilean courts have declared
it to be constitutional and have continued enforcing it;
b)
in the instant case, it is clear that the enforcement of said Decree Law
affects the right of the victims to an investigation, as well as the
identification and prosecution of those individuals responsible for the
deaths of the victims and the injuries caused to their next of kin.
Indeed, this law affects the rights of the victims to get justice;
c)
the enforcement of the self-amnesty Decree Law adversely and
permanently affected the judicial proceeding aimed at the
investigation, prosecution, arrest, trial and conviction of those
responsible for the arbitrary detention and extra-legal execution of Mr.
Almonacid-Arellano. In that sense, the State has violated Articles 8, 25
and 1(1) of the Convention in detriment of his next of kin;
d)
another consequence of the enforcement of Decree Law No. 2.191 and
the subsequent closing of the investigation was the denial of the right
to be heard by a competent court to the next of kin of Mr. AlmonacidArellano, and
e)
on the other hand, the fact that an investigation involving police
members has been entrusted to the military courts gives rise to
serious doubts regarding their independence and impartiality.
Arguments of the Representative
a)
the crime under investigation in the instant case is not a common
crime, but an international one which, overcoming amnesties, statutes
of limitations or other mechanisms aimed at extinguishing criminal
responsibility, gives right to criminal prosecution, including the trial
and conviction of the offenders.
b)
the final dismissal of the proceeding by application of the Amnesty
Decree Law shows an absolute lack of knowledge regarding the scope
of the laws governing the international community, which Chile, as a
sovereign state, accepted and incorporated to its domestic legislation;
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