Mr. President:
In Cuba, the constitutional right of individuals to freedom of thought, conscience and expression; the rights of assembly, demonstration and association; as well as freedom of the press for lawful and peaceful purposes are recognized, respected and guaranteed.
We agree on the importance that, during electoral processes, all truthful information be provided to the population and journalists, including voting procedures, electoral rights, the different candidates and electoral results.
At the same time, we advocate for a responsible conduct of all actors in the handling of this information, avoiding its political manipulation as a tool to subvert order, misinform or call for disregard of the authority of the electoral institutions.
The exercise of freedom of opinion and expression, as established by international law, does not justify the violation of other individual or collective rights. In this context, we reiterate our condemnation of hate speech and acts that promote social violence, religious intolerance, including Islamophobia and any type of discrimination against people.
The criminal blockade imposed against our country, in addition to constituting a massive and flagrant violation of the human rights of our people, curtails the freedom of U.S. citizens to travel to Cuba and interferes with their right to freedom of information and to form their own opinion on the reality of our country. This policy must cease.
Thank you