“Namibia and Cuba share a deep connection that goes beyond mere diplomacy,” said Namibian Chief Justice Peter Sam Shivute as he welcomed his Cuban counterpart, Dr. Ruben Remigio Ferro, to the African nation.
Speaking during the official visit of the President of the Supreme People’s Tribunal of Cuba (TSP) to the Supreme Court of Namibia in Windhoek, Judge Shivute said the collaboration between the two nations is rooted in solidarity and the sacrifices made by the Cuban people during Namibia’s long and difficult struggle for independence.
“During those crucial years, Cuba stood firmly by Namibia, offering support not only in words, but in actions. Its contribution is forever etched in our national history and to this day we continue to cherish the bonds of friendship that were forged in those difficult times,” he said.
Dr. Ferro's visit, his second to this country in southwestern Africa, aims to strengthen judicial ties and share best practices and debates on various topics of great interest for the exercise of the administration of justice and the continuous improvement of their performance as public servants.
For Dr. Shivute, this long-lasting friendship has flourished not only within the Executive and Legislative branches, but also in the judicial sphere. “With this exchange we have sought to strengthen our respective legal systems,” he noted.
In a Magisterial Conference before the judges of the Supreme Court of Namibia, the president of the Cuban Supreme Court explained that our country recently undertook a legal reform in the field of judicial activity. “In just over three years, practically the entire legal basis that supports it has been renewed. As a result, Cuba now has a notably modern and guarantee-based legislation, in tune with the main international instruments in force and the most advanced science and practice of law and the administration of justice at a global level,” he stated.
He also commented that this reform had its origin in the promulgation of the relatively new Constitution of the Republic, promulgated in April 2019, in whose content the regime of rights and guarantees of people was strengthened, which has been necessary to develop in multiple laws, especially, the Law of the Courts of Justice, which reaffirmed the independent and impartial nature of judges and courts in the fulfillment of their functions.
In this regard, he pointed out that “the new law on the courts constitutes a decisive step in the improvement of the Cuban judicial system and the institutionality of the country, in line with what is regulated in our Constitution and the needs of the current economic and social scenario of the nation; at the same time it promotes the qualitatively superior and more effective performance of the exercise of imparting justice, within the framework of the rule of law and social justice that is the Republic of Cuba.”
In 2016, a cooperation protocol was formalized between the respective judicial powers, which symbolize the importance of mutual learning and the exchange of ideas.
The president of the Namibian Supreme Court said that the protocol reflects shared values and a mutual commitment to the rule of law and justice, as well as the exchange of best practices and experience between the judicial powers of both nations.
As part of his visit to Namibia, Dr. Ferro was received by the SWAPO Party candidate for the upcoming presidential elections, Her Excellency Netumbo Nandi, who confirmed the demand of the government and people of Namibia for the lifting of the economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed on Cuba by the United States.
