59
because the term “immediately” must be interpreted according to the
circumstances of each case;
d)
both for Article 7(5) and for Article 8(1) of the American Convention,
“reasonable term” must be counted “from the time a person is accused,” and
accusation is “the official notification, issued by a competent authority,
charging him with having committed a criminal violation.” The date to begin
counting the time, in this case, would be September 27, 1995, the day Mr.
Tibi was detained;
e)
the reasonable term mentioned in Article 7(5) of the Convention
concludes with preventive detention and the term that Article 8(1) refers to
ends with completion of the whole proceeding; and
f)
the need for the exceptional measure of preventive detention “is
justified by the following criteria reflected” by the Inter-American Commission
in report No. 2/97 in regards to Argentina: i) a presumption that the accused
has committed a crime; ii) danger of flight; iii) the risk of new crimes being
committed; and iv) the need to investigate and the possibility of collusion. To
decree said measure it is also necessary to satisfy certain substantive
requirements: it must be a publicly actionable crime; the crime must be
punishable with more than one year in prison, there must be sufficient indicia
regarding the existence of a publicly actionable crime and there must be clear
and precise indicia that the accused is the perpetrator of or accomplice to the
crime. Preventive incarceration must fulfill certain formal requirements:
competence, formalities, agents conducting the detention, and content of the
order. Preventive detention against Mr. Tibi, as an exceptional measure, was
necessary, in accordance with the aforementioned requirements, and
therefore there was no violation of the right to personal liberty.
Considerations of the Court
94.
Article 7 of the American Convention establishes that:
1.
Every person has the right to personal liberty and security.
2.
No one shall be deprived of his physical liberty except for the reasons and
under the conditions established beforehand by the constitution of the State Party
concerned or by a law established pursuant thereto.
3.
No one shall be subject to arbitrary arrest or imprisonment.
4.
Anyone who is detained shall be informed of the reasons for his detention and
shall be promptly notified of the charge or charges against him.
5.
Any person detained shall be brought promptly before a judge or other officer
authorized by law to exercise judicial power and shall be entitled to trial within a
reasonable time or to be released without prejudice to the continuation of the
proceedings. His release may be subject to guarantees to assure his appearance for
trial.
6.
Anyone who is deprived of his liberty shall be entitled to recourse to a
competent court, in order that the court may decide without delay on the lawfulness of
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