Cuba never lost its compass amidst challenges and difficulties, nor did it stop thinking about its future, which was particularly reflected in the approval of the Code of Families, the intense legislative schedule and the recent municipal elections, which undoubtedly constituted relevant moments in the national political agenda.
Cuba never lost its compass amidst challenges and difficulties, nor did it stop thinking about its future, which was particularly reflected in the approval of the Code of Families, the intense legislative schedule and the recent municipal elections, which undoubtedly constituted relevant moments in the national political agenda.
Speaking about families in a society as diverse as today’s Cuba, implies, in the first instance, to demolish archetypes and barricades built many times from individual thinking; to make us aware that the “call of the blood” is not the only -and sometimes it Is not enough- to sustain the bonds of a progeny; that it is not about ignoring the traditional paradigms, but about the possibility that all models of families coexist, and with the due legal support to which they are entitled.
In the end, love and affection go beyond sexual orientation, gender identity, skin color, religious belief or disability. It is about achieving the right balance between the life project of each person and the project of family life in common.
The bill of the Family Code was voted into a Law in a referendum on September 25 where it was backed by 66.85 % of the votes. The law was erected, as several jurists have said, from the affections, on the basis of respect for the difference, making the responsibility and the sense of coexistence prevail beyond any stereotype and, moreover, in tune with the humanist essences of the Constitution of the Republic and the State of law and social justice that Cuba is.
In its heritage, it recognizes everyone. Children and adolescents are reflected in the norms as subjects of law, always based on respect for their progressive autonomy.
It does the same with the elderly, who have transmitted values and traditions, customs for generations and deserve respect and also the recognition of thier rights that enhance their decision-making power, their family and social inclusion.
No less important has been the recognition of the rights of family caregivers, even in the area of inheritance. After all, it is a matter of achieving a balance between the right of every person to care and the right of those who, while renounce their potential to dedicate themselves to the care of their family members.
Likewise, the law has reformulated the entire legal regime of legal capacity, regulated in the Civil Code, to facilitate that persons with disabilities can grant legal acts by themselves or with the help or assistance of a multiple support system and in this way, facilitate their social inclusion.
The Law also incorporates a specific title against all expressions of discrimination and violence that may occur within families, and establishes the legal consequences resulting from this type of conduct.
On the other hand, the Family Code places special emphasis on the happiness of individuals, based on the recognition of dignity as the supreme value. And this free development of the personality – recognized in the Constitution – implies the right of every person to found a family according to his or her life plan, among other issues.
The possibility of getting married or not, whether the couple is hetero or homo-affective; determining the economic regime of marriage or de facto union; delegating the exercise of parental responsibility in favor of third parties in exceptional situations; establishing the order of the surnames of the children by common agreement; establishing that the capacity of persons to formalize marriage is reached at 18 years of age, as well as implementing joint gestation, are some of the novelties introduced by this Law, which offer respect to the different constructions of families, based on equality and non-discrimination.
With its sights in the present and the future, the new Code was also built with the contribution of the whole society: from academics, law specialists and members of Parliament, to the people of the neighborhood, through the popular consultation; all voices were heard and they contributed nuances and enriched the legal body of the text with their opinions.
There is no doubt that the Family Code is one of the most transcendental norms for the social life of the nation, and not only because it breaks some of the traditional concepts that sustained family law for years, but also because it focuses on harmony, on the search for happiness, on reaching those paradigms, which should promote families in all their diversity.
As Dr. Leonardo Pérez Gallardo, president of the Cuban Society of Civil and Family Law, of the Union of Jurists of Cuba, has assured, “people pass in this transit that life entails, but families… families are forever”.
Taking the definitive step to build that bridge to understanding, to recognize, as a society, the diversity that unites us, to bring us closer to the country we are and aspire to be is perhaps the greatest achievement after the enactment of the Family Code.
INTENSE LEGISLATIVE SCHEDULE
In addition to the approval of the Family Code, 2022 was characterized by an arduous legislative work, a process that the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Party and President of the Republic Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, commented in the closing speech of the Ordinary Session of the National Assembly of People’s Power has favored in the shortest possible time, the laws that develop the precepts and mandates of the Constitution of the Republic are enacted.
Thus, 30 laws were included in this year’s legislative schedule (there were initially 27, and then three were incorporated, through Decree-Laws, which due to their importance acquired the rank of Law); and of these, 14 were approved:
Food and Nutritional Security Law.
Law for the Protection of Personal Data.
Law on the Process of Protection of Constitutional Rights.
Law of the Natural Resources and Environment System.
General Law for the Protection of Cultural and Natural Heritage.
Penal Code.
Law of Penal Execution.
Law of Copyright and of the Artist-Performer.
Family Code.
Law of the Office of the Comptroller General of the Republic of Cuba and the System of Superior Control of Public Funds and Administrative Management.
Law of the Office of the Attorney General of the Republic.
Law on Expropriation for reasons of Public Utility or Social Interest.
Law for the Promotion and Development of Livestock.
Likewise, other norms are in an advanced stage of elaboration of policies and preliminary drafts, but due to the need to continue deepening in their studies, it was determined that 16 laws would not be presented this year, including the Law of Social Communication.
A DEMOCRATIC AND POPULAR PROCESS
The president of the National Electoral Council (CEN in Spanish), Alina Balseiro Gutiérrez, described the November 27 election of delegates to the municipal assemblies of the People’s Power as excellent.5,728,220 voters exercised their right to vote, which represents 68.56% of a total of 8,354,717 voters. In this process, 12,427 delegates were finally elected (a third electoral round was held in five districts of the country).
The nomination process of candidates for delegates to the Municipal Assemblies of People’s Power constitutes, in her opinion, the basis of the Cuban electoral system.
“The fact that we are carrying out this process shows that Cuba continues unstoppable,” said Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez when exercising his right to vote, while adding that it also contrasts with other important exercises of popular participation that we have had in recent times.
The results of the elections were as follows:
12,422 delegates were elected, of them:
5,478 are women, which represents 44.10%.
1,579 are young people between 16 and 35 years of age, representing 12.71 %.
6,082 delegates were -elected, representing 48.96%.
Once all the delegates were elected, the 168 Municipal Assemblies of People’s Power were constituted on December 17 and in full compliance with the Constitution and the Electoral Law, and their presidents and vice presidents were elected for a period of five years.
The validity and quality of this democratic process ratified the municipal assemblies of People’s Power as the highest body of the State in their demarcation, having the responsibility to promote the economic and social development of the territories and to worthily represent the interests of the people.
Likewise, another vital process was the election of the pre-candidates to the National Assembly, an exercise carried out by the various mass and student organizations of the country as a demonstration of the genuinely democratic and inclusive nature of the Cuban electoral system.
Source: Granma
