-26been added to the file, and that he had not been given the opportunity to defend himself with
respect to the brief of July 2, 1997, presented by deputies of the PDC.150
107. On November 5, 1999, the Constitutional Division declared the second amparo application
to be inadmissible.151 The Constitutional Division stated that:
[F]rom the argumentation of the plaintiff, only a matter of mere legality emerges, lacking a
constitutional basis, observing circumstances that affect the valid configuration of the claim
discussed in this proceeding. Such circumstances are the verification that the factual basis of
the claim is based on a simple disagreement with the procedure followed by the Legislative
Assembly and with the content of the resolution through which he was removed from office,
since both the underlying arguments of the same – even when they refer to legal categories
protected by the amparo – such as the alleged concepts of violation expressed, are not specific
to the matter of amparo, since the Chamber is not an instance to review the criteria expressed
by the Legislative Assembly in the Legislative Decree [that dismisses him], nor the material
assessments or procedural actions in direct application of art. 11 of the Constitution.152
108. The Court notes that the Constitutional Division did not conduct an analysis of the alleged
violations of due process in the dismissal proceeding. On the contrary, it indicated that “it is not
an instance to review […the] procedural actions in direct application of art. 11 of the Constitution,”
which stipulates the right to a hearing.153
109. In relation to the foregoing, the Court reiterates that the States have the duty to guarantee,
to all persons under their jurisdiction, an effective judicial remedy against acts that violate their
fundamental rights. This implies that the judicial remedy must be suitable to combat the violation,
so the competent authority must examine the reasons invoked by the plaintiff and rule on them.154
In this regard, the Court has indicated that the analysis that the competent authority makes of a
judicial appeal – which contests constitutional rights such as the right to a hearing in this case –
cannot be reduced to a mere formality and omit arguments submitted by the parties, because it
must examine their reasons and rule on them pursuant to the standards established by the
American Convention.155 In the instant case, this Court notes that the Constitutional Division did
not carry out an analysis of the alleged violations of due process, since it considered that it is not
an instance to review the criteria of the Legislative Assembly regarding the procedural actions in
direct application of the Constitution.
110. The Court considers that the Constitutional Division was obliged to carry out an adequate
judicial review of the facts claimed as violations by the alleged victim, which implied examining
the allegations and arguments submitted to its knowledge regarding the dismissal procedure
carried out by the Legislative Assembly. This analysis could not be limited to examining whether
the Legislative Assembly had taken any measure to guarantee the right to a hearing, such as the
creation of the Special Commission; rather it should cover whether said right was effectively
guaranteed. This Court finds that by not conducting an analysis of whether the constitutional and
conventional rights at stake were violated, the Constitutional Division disassociated the
substantive right from the procedural right, thus preventing the analysis of the main subject
matter of the dispute. In this sense, the Court concludes that the lack of sufficient judicial review
Cf. Amparo application of July 27, 1999 (evidence file, folios 554 to 557).
Cf. Resolution of the Constitutional Division of November 5, 1999 (evidence file, folio 1586).
152
Cf. Resolution of the Constitutional Division of November 5, 1999 (evidence file, folio 1585).
153
Cf. Resolution of the Constitutional Division of November 5, 1999 (evidence file, folio 1585).
154
Cf. Case of Dismissed Employees of Petroperú et al. v. Peru Preliminary Objections, Merits, Reparations, and
Costs. Judgment of November 23, 2017. Series C No. 344, para. 177.
155
Cf. Case of Lagos del Campo v. Peru Preliminary Objections, Merits, Reparations, and Costs. Judgment of
August 31, 2017. Series C No. 340, para. 184, and Case of Dismissed Employees of Petroperú et al. v. Peru Preliminary
Objections, Merits, Reparations, and Costs. Judgment of November 23, 2017. Series C No. 344, para. 177.
150
151