A/HRC/27/52/Add.3 declaration of two states of emergency, in 2011 and 2021, in addition to violent clashes between demonstrators and security forces in July 2012, that left five community members dead and scores injured. 26. The Government has told the Special Rapporteur that in Peru no one is denied the right of assembly for peaceful acts of social protest, pointing out that the suspension or limitation of that right has occurred only in cases where such protests have led to breaches of the peace or violations of the rights of third parties. The Government adds that any person who believes that his or her rights have been infringed by agents of the State may seek the criminal and civil remedies provided for by law. 27. Members of indigenous communities, however, consider that the Government’s response to their protests against mining projects has in many cases been disproportionate. In this respect, there have been complaints of increasing reliance on the police and the armed forces to maintain order, as well as on government declarations of states of emergency in the areas where the protests are taking place. Concern has also been expressed about the role of police officials in the private security services of extractive companies, and about the appropriate degree of State supervision of such police officials’ performance in situations of social conflict. 28. At the same time, members of indigenous communities have had difficulty gaining access to the justice system to obtain redress for harm caused by law enforcement officials in the context of social unrest. This is partly due to the fact that the courts allegedly refuse to try members of the police and other State officials responsible for these incidents, and partly to the costs and time limits related to civil court proceedings. An alarming development in that regard is a new act published in January 2014, which amends the Criminal Code to exempt from responsibility members of the armed forces and the police who, “in their official capacity, and when using their weapons or another means of defence, cause injury or death”.15 29. At the same time, there have been allegations of undue “criminal prosecution” of indigenous persons who took part in protests against extractive operations and were accused of various offences such as extortion, disturbance of the public order, sedition and destruction of property. In addition, indigenous persons assert that they encounter problems in court cases against them on account of cultural and linguistic barriers, the lack of interpreters qualified to assist them and a shortage of funds, which compromise their ability to mount a legal defence. 30. The Government, for its part, notes that specific measures are provided to guarantee the defence rights of indigenous persons facing legal proceedings. In 2012, according to information received, the Directorate-General of the Public Defender Service assigned public defenders in indigenous matters in the departments of Amazonas, Loreto, San Martín and Ucayali, ensuring the defence of 25 indigenous persons charged in connection with the Bagua incidents. In addition, the Special Rapporteur has continued receiving information on detentions and criminal prosecutions, allegedly baseless, arising from the 2009 Bagua incidents. The Bagua district-attorney’s office apparently sought life sentences for two of the three indigenous persons imprisoned following the Bagua incidents, whereas none of the police officers responsible for the deaths of indigenous people has been similarly charged. 15 8 Act No. 30151 (13 January 2014). GE.14-07246