28 147. However, before the oral proceedings against the accused military personnel could begin, Amnesty Law 26479 was approved and enacted, for which reason, the Criminal Chamber of Huancavelica Superior Court, in a ruling dated July 4, 1995, found that the above law was applicable to the trial of Lieutenant Javier Bendezú Vargas and his subordinates, and ordered the case to be halted and permanently set aside. The court also 87 expunged the judicial and police records of the six defendants who benefited from the amnesty. 148. Although the Superior Chamber granted sua sponte an appeal for nullity on the grounds that one of the charges brought concerned offenses against the administration of justice to the detriment of the State, the application of the amnesty law met with the favorable opinion of the Supreme Court Prosecutor for Criminal Matters, Dr. Pedro Pablo Gutiérrez, which was ultimately confirmed by the First Transitional Criminal Chamber of 88 the Supreme Court of Justice in a ruling dated January 14, 1997. Amnesty Laws 149. On June 14, 1995, the Congress passed Law 26479, which granted amnesty to all military, police or civilian personnel involved in human rights violations committed between May 1980 and the date of the law’s 89 enactment that same day. 150. Under Article 1 of Law 26479 the benefit applied to all military, police, and civilian officials, whether they had been accused, investigated, prosecuted, indicted, or convicted for common or military crimes in the ordinary or military jurisdiction. Article 4 of the law provided for the immediate release of all persons deprived of their freedom, whether they were arrested, detained, imprisoned, or serving a prison sentence. Article 6 ordered the permanent dismissal of all judicial proceedings that were ongoing or with a conviction issued, and prohibited the reopening of any new investigations into the subject matter of such proceedings. 151. On June 28, 1995, the Congress adopted Law 26492 which interpreted Article 1 of Law 26479 in the sense that observance of the general amnesty was mandatory for all jurisdictional organs and encompassed all acts arising or originated on the occasion or as a consequence of the fight against terrorism from May 1980 until June 14, 1995, irrespective of whether or not the military, police, or civilian personnel involved were accused, investigated, on trial, or convicted, and that all judicial proceedings in process or under enforcement were 90 permanently dismissed. 152. The IACHR analyzed the amnesty laws and their consequences in 1996. It found that Law 26479 interfered with the powers of the judiciary and that Law 26492 “not only fails to provide an effective remedy, but goes much further, denying any possibility of appeal or of bringing an objection based on human rights …continuation 86 Appendix 32. Order of August 19, 1994, Huancavelica Criminal Chamber, Opinion of the Court delivered by Dr. Sánchez Arroyo. Appendix to the State’s brief of December 29, 2000; Appendix 1. Final Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Peru. Volume VII. Chapter 2: Cases Investigated by the CVR 2.50. The Extrajudicial Executions in Santa Barbara, Proceedings in the Judiciary. 87 Appendix 1. Final Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Peru. Volume VII. Chapter 2: Cases Investigated by the CVR 2.50. The Extrajudicial Executions in Santa Barbara, Proceedings in the Judiciary. 88 Appendix 1. Final Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Peru. Volume VII. Chapter 2: Cases Investigated by the CVR 2.50. The Extrajudicial Executions in Santa Barbara, Proceedings in the Judiciary; Appendix 33. First Transitional Criminal Chamber, Case 3465-95 Huancavelica, January 14, 1997. Appendix to the State's brief of December 29, 2000, and Appendix to the petitioners’ brief of November 18, 1997. 89 Law 26479, which granted a general amnesty to all military, police, and civilian personnel in various cases. Published in the official gazette, El Peruano, on June 15, 1995. 90 Law 26492, promulgated on June 30, 1995 and published in the official gazette, El Peruano, on July 2, 1995.