Madam President:
Cuba has a zero-tolerance policy on human trafficking based on the pillars of prevention, confrontation, and victim protection. We fully comply with our obligations under the United Nations Convention on Transnational Organized Crime and its Trafficking in Persons Protocol, to which we are a State party.
Despite the low incidence of this crime in our country, we continue to implement the National Action Plan for the Prevention, Combating, and Protection of Victims of Trafficking in Persons, a fundamental tool for coordinated action between the state and civil society organizations.
The national legal framework allows for the prevention and combating of human trafficking and related offenses, including pimping, pornography, and child prostitution. The Criminal Code encompasses all types of offenses outlined in the Palermo Protocol. National legislation defines forced or compulsory labor as a crime, prohibits child labor, defines the crime of trafficking, and includes best practices from judicial proceedings.
Madam President:
International cooperation is essential to combating human trafficking effectively. Punitive approaches and politicization do nothing to promote collaboration and dialogue necessary to address this issue.
We reject the unjustified and discriminatory inclusion of Cuba in the Trafficking in Persons Report unilaterally issued by the US Department of States for purely political reasons.
It is totally unacceptable that the United States continues to accuse Cuba of promoting the trafficking or slavery. We strongly condemn the vicious campaign waged by this country, particularly by its Secretary of State, against Cuban medical cooperation. This hostile action ignores the contributions of tens of thousands of medical professionals to global healthcare in dozens of countries. These efforts have saved millions of lives in more than six decades of humanitarian work.
Cuba will continue contributing to the health and well-being of those in need.
In closing, I reaffirm our unwavering commitment to continue working together to prevent and combat human trafficking, protect victims, and expand international cooperation.
Thank you.