Article 8(2)(d)-(e) of the American Convention establishes the right of the accused to have the representation of a lawyer. The Commission has interpreted this provision to include the right to have a lawyer present for all important stages of the proceedings, particularly where the defendant is held in detention. Thus, for example, the Commission has noted that procedures which do not allow for the presence of an attorney "during the first part of the proceeding, in which decisive evidence against the defendant may be produced, could seriously affect his right to a defense…." The Commission has also established the right of a defendant, in general, to have an attorney present when giving a statement or undergoing interrogation…. --IACHR, OEA/Ser.L/V/II.102 doc. 9 rev. 1, 26 February 1999 (para. 97). 68