Statement by Ambassador Yuri A. Gala López, Chargé d'Affaires a.i. of the Permanent Mission of Cuba to the United Nations, at the UN high-level debate on “Equal access to justice for all: advancing reforms for peaceful, just and inclusive societies”.

Mr. President,

The issue of strengthening the legal and regulatory framework, including the promotion and protection of human rights, guarantees of due process and non-discrimination in access to justice, have been a priority for Cuba.

In 2019, the new Constitution of the Republic was enacted and ratified in a popular referendum with 86 per cent of the votes. This led to a process of broad legislative reform which resulted in 118 higher-ranking legal norms have been approved, an unprecedented fact in the country for such a short period of time.

This process has made it possible to have modern laws for the organization of the State and the Government, to implement an in-depth and comprehensive procedural and judicial reform, and to protect the broad rights and guarantees set out in the Constitution, based on the Cuban reality, the obligations arising from the international instruments to which we are a party, our development goals and the 2030 Agenda.

This intensive and comprehensive legislative process has included broad consultative processes with the population, two of which have become national referendums, and have made it possible to enrich the body and content of these norms with popular knowledge, while confirming the genuinely popular and participatory nature of Cuban democracy.

In turn, the comprehensive reform of the criminal justice system has implied the profound modification of substantive and procedural norms, such as the Criminal Code, the Criminal Procedure Law and the Criminal Enforcement Law.

These new laws improve Cuba’s performance in the administration of justice. The new Criminal Code strengthens the fight against all forms of violence and discrimination. The Criminal Procedure Law recognizes the victims and those affected as parties in the process and strengthens the Habeas Corpus procedure. The Law on Criminal Procedure strengthens the differentiated treatment of those punished under special conditions and introduces substantial changes in the regulations on the precautionary measure of provisional imprisonment.

On the other hand, in 2021 and 2022, other relevant regulations were also adopted in this area, including the Procedural Code, the Family Code, the Personal Data Protection Law and the Law on the Process of Protection of Constitutional Rights.

All these norms contribute, in short, to the protection of the rights and guarantees set forth in the Constitution and the laws, which are enjoyed without discrimination in Cuba.

Mr. President,

The maxim that all people should be treated equally and in accordance with the law by the authorities, including the institutions responsible for administering justice, is a reality in my country. However, we are not satisfied, and we will continue to move forward in strengthening our legal and regulatory framework to make the dream of an increasingly fair and equitable society for all come true.

We will do so despite the negative impact caused on these efforts by the economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed on us by the United States for more than 6 decades; and the disinformation campaign organized and financed against Cuba from that country, which includes the manipulation of elements related to the administration of justice, with the purpose of justifying, before the world, the hostility against our people, and to hide the intention of violating our right to self-determination.

Thank you