37 the charge (Article 8(2)(b)); the right to defend oneself personally or to be assisted by legal counsel of one’s own choosing, and to communicate freely and privately with one’s counsel (Article 8(2)(d)); the right of the defense to examine witnesses present in the court and to obtain the appearance, as witnesses, of experts or other persons who may throw light on the facts (Article 8(2)(f)); the right to be presumed innocent (Article 8(2)); and the right to have adequate time and means to prepare the defense (Article 8(2)(c)); i. The exercise of defense is a right and a guarantee to prevent the arbitrariness of the State’s organs and includes substantive and procedural aspects. It also includes the following guarantees for the accused: to be heard before the decision is taken, to participate effectively throughout the proceeding, to offer and produce evidence, to obtain well-founded decisions and prompt notifications in accordance with the law and access to the information in the case file, the possibility of contesting probative elements, legal counsel and the opportunity to appeal the decision; j. The European Court has established that the guarantees contained in Article 6(1) of the European Convention on Human Rights are applicable to proceedings where fundamental human rights and duties or obligations are determined; it has also established that, even when the State is exercising discretionary powers, the right to file arguments subsists, because such powers must always be exercised in accordance with the law. The guarantees of due process specific to judicial proceedings have expanded to the sphere of any proceeding or process that affects human rights; k. When a State exercises discretionary powers, it must act in accordance with the law, following criteria of simplicity, fairness and proportionality, and must always respect due process. In particular, proceedings to sanction authorities must be entirely regulated by and pursuant to due process. To the contrary, in the impeachment proceeding we are examining, “the facts were examined arbitrarily and the law applied in a discriminatory fashion”, which violated the right to defense of the victims; and l. Due process is a right in itself, but it also has an instrumental nature since it allows the enjoyment of other rights; consequently, violation of due process is more serious, because it guarantees respect for substantive rights and the control of arbitrariness in the exercise of power. The State’s arguments 65. Peru did not submit any arguments on this matter, since it did not appear before the Court in the case sub judice (supra 58-62). * * * The Court’s considerations 66. Article 8(1) and 8(2) of the American Convention establish that: