Mr. Moderator,
We thank you for the presentation of the document on workstream 2. We would like to share our comments thereon:
The repeated reference that committees “should” adopt certain structures, compositions, and methods of operation, including the periodicity of meetings at least twice a year, the maintenance of subcommittees, the establishment of permanent secretariats, and the articulation of action plans, in practice establishes governance parameters that cannot be applied as a one-size-fits-all model for all countries.
The document should explicitly recognize that States must establish their National Commissions taking into account their national conditions and capacities, as well as their legal and institutional traditions.
We consider it useful and necessary to include the following safeguard in the text:
“Nothing in this document shall be interpreted as limiting the sovereign right of States to determine the form, composition, mandate and functioning of their national mechanisms for the implementation of International Humanitarian Law, in accordance with their respective domestic legal systems.”
With regard to the proposal contained in the document on the creation of a Steering Group of National IHL Committees, composed of six States and the ICRC, Cuba considers that the ICRC, given its level of expertise, neutrality, and capacity for influence, should assume a role more oriented towards guiding and advising the work of this Group, rather than being part of a governing structure that should be intergovernmental in nature.
The document proposes an institutional architecture with steering groups, digital platforms, regional and global meetings, without clearly specifying relevant aspects such as the principles underpinning its functioning, its concrete structure, funding sources, and implications for participating States. In this regard, Cuba requests further information before taking a definitive position on this proposal.
Cuba does not support the establishment of non-voluntary oversight mechanisms based on punitive or comparative approaches.
Mr. Moderator,
Cuba will continue to participate in this process in a constructive manner and with the conviction that National IHL Committees are an important instrument to ensure the effective implementation of International Humanitarian Law, based on respect for State sovereignty and national legislation.
We look forward to our considerations being taken into account in the next version of the document on workstream 2.
Thank you very much.