Cuban Constitution

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The first Cuban constitution was promulgated in 1901 just before Cuba's independence . Before that there were various constitutional drafts during the Wars of Independence , including during the Republic in Arms . The current constitution came into force in 1976.

1901 Constitution

The constitution of 1901 was the first basic law of the newly independent republic . It was characterized, among other things, by US interventionalism , as set out in the Platt Amendment .

1940 Constitution

The constitution, passed in 1940 under Federico Laredo Brú , is considered to be one of the most progressive basic laws of the time. It came into force a few months before the beginning of the first presidency of the then democratically elected and later dictator Fulgencio Batista and was partially overridden by him in 1952. The constitution incorporated numerous political and social demands from the popular reform movement of the 1930s , led by Ramón Grau , which drove dictator Gerardo Machado out of the country in 1933 . This included general, free and secret voting rights , including for women , eight-hour working days , minimum wages and the right to strike . Discrimination on the basis of skin color , gender and belief was forbidden, and large estates should be severely restricted. However, only a small part of the principles laid down in the constitution have been implemented in political practice.

The restoration and implementation of the 1940 constitution was one of the main goals promised several times between 1953 and 1958 by Fidel Castro during his revolutionary struggle against Batista. As early as January 13, 1959, and thus less than two weeks after the victory of the revolution , the formally valid constitution of 1940 was supplemented by decree by the revolutionary interim government controlled by Castro with restrictive additions that invalidated important legal principles. On February 6, 1959, the constitution was replaced by a provisional Basic Law.

1976 Constitution

After the consolidation of the revolution, a new, socialist constitution came into force in 1976 , which, according to the government , was ratified by referendum by almost 98% of the population . In it, among other things, the leadership role of the communist party , the central control of the economy and free access to education and health are laid down.

Under the impression of the collapse of the Eastern Bloc around 1990 and the special period that followed, an amendment to the constitution was made in 1992 which, among other things, allows joint ventures with foreign companies. Even that was religious freedom enshrined, which now also allowed members of the Communist Party, to profess their religion.

In the last version of 2002, the socialist system was codified as "irrevocable".

Constitution of 2018/19

The draft of a new constitution was approved by parliament after a debate on 21/22 Unanimously adopted in July 2018. The process continued with public discussion forums from mid-August to mid-November 2018. A constitutional referendum followed on February 24, 2019, and only then was the final text approved by the one-party parliament. The new constitution came into force in April 2019. Extensive legislative work is now ahead of us in the coming years in order to put the structures provided for in the new constitution into practice.

One change concerns the ultimate goal of communism, which is missing in the new constitution, instead socialism remains enshrined. For the office of president, which is resolved by the prime minister, a ten-year term of office is fixed for a five-year term, together with an upper age limit of 60 years for the first election. Private property , long stigmatized by the communists , was included in the draft constitution and the text of marriage was changed so that same-sex couples can also be included.

literature

  • Christine Höcker-Weyand: The Constitution of the Republic of Cuba, in: Constitutional and administrative reforms in the socialist states. Edited by Friedrich-Christian Schröder and Boris Meissner, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1978, pp. 335–352
  • Bert Hoffmann: Kuba , Verlag CH Beck, Munich 2009, ISBN 978-3-406-55851-1
  • Michael Zeuske : Island of Extremes - Cuba in the 20th Century . 2nd Edition. Rotpunktverlag, Zurich 2004. ISBN 3-85869-208-5

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Bert Hoffmann: The Batista era: The infinite gap between constitution and reality In: Kuba , 2009, p. 51
  2. ↑ Bert Hoffmann: From the Sierra Maestra to Havana: The Triumph of the Rebel Army In: Kuba , 2009, p. 60
  3. ↑ A la Nación: Manifiesto del Moncada, ( Memento of the original from July 14, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.lajiribilla.cu archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. July 23, 1953, in: La Jiribilla , accessed June 10, 2014 (Spanish)
  4. ↑ Raul Chibás, Filipe Pazos, Fidel Castro: Manifiesto de la Sierra ( Memento of the original from January 17, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.chibas.org archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . July 28, 1957
  5. ↑ Christine Höcker-Weyand: The Constitution of the Republic of Cuba, p. 338f.
  6. ↑ https://havanatimes.org/?p=136317
  7. ^ Cuba cemented tentative reforms , NZZ, July 25, 2018, page 5, title of the print edition
  8. ↑ Marcel Kunzmann: New constitution in Cuba has come into force
  9. ^ Cuba ditches aim of building communism from draft constitution