10 24. In the instant case, the Court verifies that the State has not submitted a preliminary objection of failure to exhaust domestic remedies during the proceeding before the Commission at the admissibility stage. The State forwarded this objection to the Commission through a brief filed during the merits stage.19 Therefore, the Court concludes that the State tacitly waived its right to lodge this objection at the appropriate procedural time to do so. V COMPETENCE 25. Pursuant to the terms of Articles 62(3) of the Convention, the Court is competent to hear the instant case, because Venezuela has been a State Party to the Convention since August 9, 1977, and it accepted the contentious jurisdiction of the Court on June 24, 1981. VI ARTICLES 8 (RIGHT TO A FAIR TRIAL)20 AND 25 (RIGHT TO JUDICIAL PROTECTION)21 IN 22 RELATION TO ARTICLES 1(1) (OBLIGATION TO RESPECT RIGHTS) AND 2 (DOMESTIC 23 LEGAL EFFECTS) OF THE AMERICAN CONVENTION 26. According to the evidence produced, the Court finds it has been proven that the judicial disciplinary body that removed from office Judges Apitz, Rocha and Ruggeri originated from a constitutional transition process which started in 1999, when an Asamblea Nacional Constituyente [National Constitutional Assembly] (hereinafter the “Constitutional Assembly”) was assembled and, after declaring that an “institutional crisis” existed and that a “reorganization of all the government 19 Cf. brief of the State of July 29, 2005, received by the Commission on August 1, 2005 (Evidence file, Book II, pp. 661 to 665). 20 On this matter, Article 8 of the Convention provides: Every person has the right to a hearing, with due guarantees and within a reasonable time, by a competent, independent, and impartial tribunal, previously established by law, in the substantiation of any accusation of a criminal nature made against him or for the determination of his rights and obligations of a civil, labor, fiscal, or any other nature. 21 On this matter, Article 25 of the Convention provides: Everyone has the right to simple and prompt recourse, or any other effective recourse, to a competent court or tribunal for protection against acts that violate his fundamental rights recognized by the constitution or laws of the state concerned or by this Convention, even though such violation may have been committed by persons acting in the course of their official duties. 22 Article 1(1) of the Convention provides: The States Parties to this Convention undertake to respect the rights and freedoms recognized herein and to ensure to all persons subject to their jurisdiction the free and full exercise of those rights and freedoms, without any discrimination for reasons of race, color, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, economic status, birth, or any other social condition. 23 Article 2 of the Convention provides: Where the exercise of any of the rights or freedoms referred to in Article 1 is not already ensured by legislative or other provisions, the States Parties undertake to adopt, in accordance with their constitutional processes and the provisions of this Convention, such legislative or other measures as may be necessary to give effect to those rights or freedoms.