The Cuban parliamentarians approved the Laws of the Justice Courts, the criminal process, the administrative process and the code for the processes this Thursday. These laws will give path to “a deep judicial and processes reform in the field of the Cuban justice”. 

They met semi face -to -face at the Palacio de la Revolucion de La Habana in the last day of the Seventh Regular Sessions of the National Assembly of the Popular Power(ANPP in Spanish),in its IX Legislature. The parliamentarians gave the go ahead to the four regulations presented by the Government Council of the Popular Supreme Court (TSP in Spanish), in accordance with the tenth transitory regulation of the Constitution of the Republic.

The president of the TSP, Rubén Remigio Ferro, when presenting the projects for the approval, reminded that the four documents were consulted by the population, and the parliamentarian’s criteria and proposals, organizations of the legal division, universities and other institutions.  

The regulations incorporate novelties and develop rights and guarantees the Magna Carta opened, such as the access to justice, among them.

A correction and style commission will go through the four laws, that will enter into force next January 1st.  

he Laws of the Justice Courts

Remigio Ferro said that the regulation which reforms the law No. 82, 1997, supports the socialist principle of the country and takes into account what is established in the socioeconomic guidelines and in the conceptualization of the Cuban model. 

He also informed that, conventions, protocols and other international treaties      ratified in Cuba were observed for their preparation. “The law has much of innovation and science in it”.

It strengthens the institutionalization of the country, according to what is set in the Magna Carta.

Justice is assumed as a public service.

It strengthens the implement of the rights and guarantees of the people.

Incorporates the best experiences gained in the judicial practice in the last years.

It is ratified that the Court has to safeguard the economic, social and political order established in the Constitution of the Republic.  

It strengthens the principle saying that most of the conflicts are known and solved, by the municipality popular courts and their territorial sections.

Greater flexibility in the court work.

When reading the report of the Bill on the Courts of Justice, José Luis Toledo Santander, stated the important changes to the organizations of courts in the country, in relation to the principles mentioned on the Chapter V in the Constitution.

He explained that the new law identifies the principles supporting the judicial function, as the impartiality and the obedience to the law of the judges, allowing their acting with no restrictions, no influence, no pressure or interference.  

It talks about the people’s right to be judged by the ordinary justice courts in agreement with the legally established procedures and the respect to the rights of the parts.

He emphasized the form of election of the judges; their immobility and the procedures to be disciplinary corrected, suspended or revoked.

The new structure proposed for the justice courts will make an adequate access of the people to these courts easier, a rational use of the human and material resources and a better quality and prompt in the steps for the cases.

Criminal Process law

This new norm substitutes the existing one:  the Criminal Procedure Law, of 1977.

The rights and guarantees in the Constitution and the recommendations made by the Parliament during the rendering of accounts of the TSP facing this organ in December 2020, besides 23 conventions and international instruments.

Rubén Remigio Ferro said that the best experiences and the most advanced regulations of other countries were taken as referents and adapted to the Cuban peculiarities and circumstances.

Among its main novelties he mentioned:

Gives an important role to the victims in the criminal process, what does not happen now, as they can neither propose evidences nor appealing, generating complaints. Now victims have the right to name a lawyer since the beginning of the process, which attends as an assistant of the attorney and practice the civil action or resigned from it. They can also declare in court at the beginning to observe the practice of the evidence and establish legal resources against the decisions affecting them.

Ways to solve conflicts by alternative methods are presented.

Every accused has the right to a defense and to choose who defends him or her once the charges were heard. 

If the person is arrested or insured with a provisional prison precautionary measure or in prison for any other reason and does not appoints a defense lawyer in a period of 48 hours, and asks for it; the proceeding authority has to provide a public defender.   

An honorable treatment and violence or coercion ban during the process.

The right to not self –incrimination: The right to remain in silence and not declare against oneself or closer relatives is established, and does not their guilt.

Presumption of innocence: It is a guarantee that is established since the beginning of the process and until a strong conviction exists, having a presumption in favor of the accused facing the lack of evidences against him or her.  

Law on Administrative Procedure

The president of the Popular Supreme Court said it partially replaces the norm No. 7, about Civil, Administrative, Work and Economic Procedure and   emerged from a collective work, enriched from the bases.

Claims could be made against administrative decisions or executives´ omissions, members of the staff or employees, in their administrative functions.    

To go to court, it is demanded to, first claim before the higher administrative authority to the supposed responsible for the decision, omission, damage or harm.

The administrative process is seen as a legal instrument to now, the controversies regarding the public administrative functioning, much deeper and with much diversity. The competence of the court is wider concerning administrative matters.

There is a possibility, with the corresponding exceptions, to sue the organs, entities or people developing administrative functions in the country, being part of the Structure of the Public Administration or not.

It reinforces the oral proceedings, through audiences, which offer greater possibilities of communication between the court and the people involved in the conflict, supposing greater guarantees of reaching a fair decision.

 “The dimension of the modifications this Project introduces in the administrative process area does not have a precedent in the history of our country. José Luis Toledo Santander said that never before our country saw an administrative processes law project  that sees the legal guarantees facing the administrative acting, in the way this regulation does, for the rights of the people, the public interest and the State administrative management as such ”                   .   

Law for the Code of the Processes

It partially replaces theLaw No. 7, of  Civil , Administrative ,Work and Economy

Procedures.

It unifies the way of proceeding for the civil, family, commercial and work and social security affairs, establishing the basic similar modalities for the processing of the issues related to these topics: the ordinary process and the indictment.

The access to law is widen regarding certain issues which require it, due to their nature and influence in the peoples´ life that did not have this possibility before. 

The direct interaction between the court and the parts is strengthened by doing audiences, in which the court listen to the ones involved and when possible, finds an agreement among them.      

This code, contrasting its predecessors, potentiates the orality and the public character of its events.

 It shows a more active role of the judges, looking for the truth in the facts. 

The president of the Constitutional and Legal Affairs Commission underlined that the guarantees this norm establishes for the disable people, as well as cases of family or gender violence, when there are underage children or any other situation in which there are people in vulnerable conditions.

 (Taken from Cubadebate)