Race and Equality Recognizing the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination

Race and Equality Recognizing the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination

Message from Carlos Quesada – Executive Director Institute on Race, Equality and Human Rights

Today, March 21st, we again commemorate the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. In observing what is happening in the world and in our continent, I can only think about how discrimination, racism, xenophobia, and intolerance are gaining ground. They are highly present in the media, in politics, in our societies and in our daily lives. Fighting for the elimination of all forms of discrimination, xenophobia, homophobia, and intolerance is one of the fundamental pillars to promote social cohesion, the right to live, and diversity.

I want to call attention to the fact that in our continent, only three countries have ratified the Inter-American Convention Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, and Related Intolerance: Costa Rica, Uruguay, and Antigua and Barbuda. It is imperative that the rest of the States in the region truly assume the commitment to combat, punish, and eliminate this scourge that eats away at our societies. We urge States to sign and ratify this important Inter-American instrument, especially as a part of the Action Plans they should develop during the International Decade for People of African Descent (2015 – 2024).

We cannot allow Afro-descendants in the Americas to continue being the most marginalized populations and the most affected by the structural racism that is reflected in few state investments, high rates of illiteracy, under-representation in decision-making bodies, and under-representation within the system of administration of justice. Young Afro-descendants continue to be victims of racial profiling and police brutality. Afro-descendant women continue to have little access to health and education, which perpetuates high levels of poverty.

States are preparing to begin a new census round (2020) where we hope not only to have quanitifiable data on how many Afro-descendants there are, but also on the socioeconomic conditions of these populations. States must use this data to make a better use of their resources and invest in the most impoverished areas, which coincide with the areas in which Afro-descendants live.

In this second decade of the 21st century, it has become clear that Afro-descendants, thanks to their resilience, expect more than good intentions: they expect real structural changes. More Afro-descendant academics, politicians, professionals, and businesspeople have demonstrated not only the contributions they have made to their countries, but also that they are part of, have built, and will continue to build the identities of the countries where they live, from Canada to Argentina. This is true whether they are called black, African-Americans, Afro-latinos, palenqueros, raizales, o pretos!

From Race and Equality, we will continue to make visible, combat, and denounce the scourge of racial discrimination and other related forms of intolerance together with our partners in the hemisphere, who with their experience and struggle have made progress at both the national and international level.

“We will continue helping people with disabilities despite all obstacles.”

On March 26 and 27, Cuba will be reviewed by the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, as a State Party to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. In the spirit of the upcoming review, we present this interview with Juan del Pilar Goberna Hernández, founder of the Red de Cultura Inclusiva.

The Red de Cultura Inclusiva [Network of Inclusive Culture] is an independent organization that has provided assistance since 2016 to persons with motor, visual, and auditory disabilities in Cuba as a resource for people with disabilities living in a totalitarian context.

One of the drivers of this network is Juan del Pilar Goberna Hernández, a man who completely lost his vision six years ago and decided to dedicate all of his energy to fighting against the innumerable barriers of all kinds faced by persons with disabilities in Cuba.  This human rights activist was prevented from becoming a member of the Asociación Nacional del Ciego [National Association of the Blind] (ANCI) due to his expression of political ideas that run contrary to the Castro regime.

Why was the Network of Inclusive Culture founded, and what are its objectives? 

When I lost my eyesight in 2012, my family and I began to realize the difficulties these people have, how this and other disabilities change you and your family’s lives completely.  We also saw the huge amount of ignorance people have regarding disabilities, as they don’t even know that an international convention exists to protect their rights.

The Network was created in order to spread knowledge regarding these people’s rights, visualize their problems, and provide counsel in any way we can.  We are an entirely civic non-profit organization; we don’t wish to go against the government, but its intolerant stance prevents us from doing our work.

To date, what work has the Network done and what has been its scope and impact?

We have hosted dialogue roundtables and workshops with persons with disabilities and persons who wish to join the Network to help these types of people.  We monitor cases that don’t enjoy governmental protection or in which such protection has been very weak.  We prioritize human rights activists, due to the extreme vulnerability to which they are subject from the double discrimination they face.

In addition, we have created a database of many of the structural barriers that exist in the country.  We collect cases of persons with disabilities whose stories are published by the official media.  Our Network has reached provinces such as Holguín, Granma, Cienfuegos, Villa Clara, and Matanzas.  We would travel and meet even more people but for a lack of available funds.

Although the impact of our work is reflected very slowly in the daily life of society, it was very rewarding when we learned that in Holguín, for example, last year 150 structural barriers were eliminated, and a greater number of publicity spots [aired] on television about how one should treat persons with disabilities.  The television program ‘Cuando una mujer’ [When A Woman] also has included cases of persons with some sort of physical limitation.

How has the regime’s repression toward the Network manifested itself?

On several occasions, when we learn of a case and visit the person, State Security visits them afterward and spreads fear in the person or makes them false promises that they will help them.  These people get scared and cut off contact with us.  Both my wife, Acelia Carvajal, and myself have been detained by State Security and they have threatened us in many ways and clearly tell us they will not allow us to do our work.

Other members of the Network, like Daniurka González, have also been interrogated by State Secrutity on several occasions.  When we host activities, we feel the political police are watching us.

The repression has increased since we attended the 164th Extraordinary Session of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights on Persons with Disabilities in Mexico in September of last year (2018), where we made documented presentations on two cases of children with child cerebral paralysis who have been completely abandoned, out of a total of eight cases we had compiled.

During that event, we focused on several rights that are violated, such as the rights to association and assembly, as well as the discrimination suffered by people with disabilities for political reasons, for not agreeing with the government.

All of that upsets the regime, and that is why they have prohibited my wife from leaving the country, thereby ensuring we cannot continue to make presentations in international fora on the neglect and indifference shown by State institutions toward many, many people with disabilities in Cuba, and even moreso if they are political opponents.

What final message would you like to transmit regarding your civic work?

We would simply like to coexist alongside the associations created by the government for people with some type of disability, as well as help not only those people but also their relatives.  Our work is purely civic and humanitarian.  We have told the authorities time and again: all we wish is for is compliance with the established rights of persons with disabilities, which today are a dead letter.  And thus shall we continue, despite the obstacles.

International Women’s Day: WE ARE WOMEN IN THE STRUGGLE AND ALL OF US ARE DIVERSE!

On March 8, 2019, in commemoration of International Women’s Day, the International Institute on Race, Equality, and Human Rights (Race & Equality) remembers and stands with the struggle of all women throughout the world for recognition and guarantees of their rights.

Despite the many efforts and clear progress made in the area of rights to improve the state of women in Latin America and the Caribbean, especially as regards the closure of gender gaps, and guarantee women’s real and effective access to health, education, employment, and political and economic participation, the huge challenge remains of overcoming the inequities that persist in virtually all spheres, particularly  when dealing with women who are racialized, ethnic, rural, or have diverse gender identities.

According to the data provided by Michelle Bachelet, the current United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, in an article entitled The State of Women in Latin America: 25 Years of Light and Shadows, 9,300 women die every year from causes related to pregnancy and their deficient gynecological-obstetric practices.  For every 100 men who live in poverty, 118 women live in a similar state, a figure that accounts for a systematic increase in poverty among women in the region since 1997 and up to the present day.

Despite the fact that women’s participation in the labor market has made notable strides, women continue to be a minority presence, marked by a series of “micro-aggressions” related to gender parity, the reason for which, according to CEPAL, women’s participation in the labor market has stalled at around 53%, and the 78.1% of women who work are in sectors defined by CEPAL as having low productivity, entailing worse remuneration, low social security coverage, and less contact with technology and innovation.

As regards women’s political participation, the challenge remains to increasing the presence of women in spaces of power to thereby transform the patriarchal structures that make it impossible for women to have a presence in governments, the management of public and private businesses, and in the development of laws.  “As long as we are not allowed to be decision-makers [or] participate in spaces of power, the possibility of leveling the playing field and building our societies under equal conditions will be a utopia,” notes the chief.  

In the area of gender-based violence, Latin America and the Caribbean continue to present the highest rate of assaults against women, ranked 14 among the 25 countries with the highest indices of femicide in the world.  Approximately 2,100 women are assassinated every year (six per day and 175 every month) for the simple fact of being women, according to what Bachelet indicated.

The foregoing provides a quick glance at the state of women’s rights in the region; nonetheless, a series of factors that run contrary to them have cross-cut the recognition of women’s diversity and the particularity of their conditions vis-à-vis the enforceability of rights; that is, rural women, Afro-descendant women, and those with diverse sexual and gender identities additionally confront other types of violence that we should make visible on this day.

According to the CEPAL report Afro-Descendant Women in Latin America and the Caribbean: Debts of Equality, the ‘visibilization’ of the historic presence of Afro-descendant women demands recognition of their concrete experience as women who live within a historical, social, and cultural context of slave-owning and racist societies.  Contexts, therefore, that deepen the inequities faced by Afro-descendant women as compared with other social groups, due to their ‘invisibilization’ as subjects of differentiated policies with particular impacts and thus, worrisome indices of poverty, little possibility to access healthcare, education, employment, and participation in decision-making spaces much lower that that of the rest of the population, further undermined by racist and discriminatory logic that is a product of the historical legacy manifested in the ways in which Afro-descendant peoples develop in society.

Something similar occurs with lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and intersex women who throughout history have confronted physical and symbolic violence incorporated into the social group that makes it impossible for their sexual and gender identities to be recognized and thus, have their fundamental rights guaranteed.

According to the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, and Intersex Association (ILGA), persons who self-identify as having an identity that differs from cisgender (socially concordant with the sex assigned at birth) or are socially recognized [as such], suffer from innumerable human rights violations.  In particular, in Latin America women are the recipients of a series of violent acts on the part of male chauvinists who stigmatize and/or pigeonhole them in roles in which they are not allowed to freely express themselves and recognize their identity.  It is thus that on average, the life expectancy of trans women is no greater than 30 years; their participation in the labor market lags behind, a high percentage of them work in the informal sector or as sexual workers, and they confront violent and complex processes for accessing health [and] education services and participating in spaces of decision-making and power.

We at Race & Equality call on all of the States of Latin America and the Caribbean to continue working to ensure guarantees and recognition of women’s rights.  Unquestionably, empowered women break the cycles of violence and poverty, decisive factors in making progress in consolidating societies that are more equitable and democratic.  To ensure that result, it is essential to continue working to break historically rooted patriarchal schemas, especially as they relate to women’s participation in decision-making spaces.

We urge the States to not lose sight of plurality and diversity in the construction of what it means to be a woman, in which it is essential to undertake affirmative actions that recognize Afro-descendant [and] rural women and women with diverse sexual and gender identities, in this way breaking the barriers that historically have systematically prevented the inclusion and participation of this group of women in social life and ensured that their future generations were subject to the same vicious cycle of inequality, racism, and discrimination.

LGBTI human rights promoted in Miami’s Ward 4

Washington, DC, February 19, 2019 – Over the course of three days, tens of leaders, defenders, and activists from the LGBTI community on the American continent met in the 4Ward Miami event organized by 4Ward America to share their experiences [and] knowledge and search for opportunities to connect through different activities.

More than 30 speakers participated in the event, held February 16-18, who spoke about the state of LGBTI persons in their respective countries vis-à-vis various topics.  Public officials also participated, such as Fabrice Houdart, a United Nations Human Rights Officer; Susan Harper, Consul General of Canada in Miami; and Congressman David Richardson, a Florida Representative in the United States House of Representatives.

The International Institute of Race, Equality, and Human Rights (Race & Equality), in addition to being the official sponsor of the event, was a participant, represented by its LGBTI Programs Officer for Latin America, Mauricio Noguera, and several partner organizations: Cristián King, Executive Director of Organización de Transexuales, Travestis y Transgéneros de la Republica Dominicana [Organization of Transsexuals, Transvestites, and Transgender Persons of the Dominican Republic] (TRANSSA); Bruna Benevides, Secretary of the Articulación Política de la Asociación Nacional de Transexuales de Brasil [Political Coordinating Body of the National Association of Transsexuals of Brazil] (ANTRA); and Luna Sharlotte Humerez, President of Organización de Transexuales, Travestis y Transgénero Femeninas de Bolivia [Organization of Transsexuals, Transvestites, and Transgender Females of Bolivia] (OTRAF).

Noguera expounded upon the current state of LGBIT rights in Latin America; Humerez and Benavides spoke on the state of LGBTI women in the Americas, specifically in their countries of origin and in particular spheres, such as indigenous trans women; and King presented on the current state of the LGBTI population with HIV and AIDS in the region, wherein he placed particular emphasis on explaining a law on the topic that is applied in the Dominican Republic.

“It was relevant for our partner organizations to be able to be heard in this type of international forum, to be able to bring information on their countries and present it in this space.  In addition, it was relevant for all of us to come together to dialogue, analyze common problems, establish alliances, and share concerns,” noted Noguera.

Thanks to the support of the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor of the United States Department of State, Race & Equality was able to sponsor the event and facilitate the attendance of the aforementioned international invitees.

The Symposium on LGBTI Human Rights also addressed issues such as environmental sustainability, healthcare, immigration, and sports, all of which were focused on the measure to which they intersect with the various degrees of security, equity, and freedom experienced by LGBTI persons.

November 20 – International Day of Transsexual Memory

“I am convinced that the engine of change is love.  The love we were denied
is our impetus to change the world.  All of the blows and slights
I suffered cannot compare with the infinite
love that surrounds me at this time.”
– Lohana Berkins (1965-2016), transvestite activist

On the International Day of Transsexual Memory, the International Institute on Race, Equality, and Human Rights honors the memory of transsexuals who have lost their lives as a result of acts of intolerance, hate, and discrimination due to their gender identity in Latin America and the Caribbean.  November 20 is also a day to celebrate the lives of transsexuals who, despite social exclusion, limits on exercising their rights, and the absence of social policies that address their basic needs, continue their fight to defend their rights and construct networks of social transformation starting from their local milieus.

Discrimination, violence, segregation against transsexuals, and diverse gender-based segregation constitute a structural aspect of society; therefore, throughout history, their rights have been subject to a vicious cycle of violence, degradation, and oppression that has made it harder for them to enjoy the guarantees of a decent and complete life.

Around the world, transsexuals are subject to mockery, blackmail, physical and sexual assault, and assassination due to their diverse identities.  In addition, they are denied the opportunity to decent employment, medical care in keeping with their needs, and to be seen as subjects worthy of respect and recognition in society.  The stigma to which transsexuals are subject leads to the ‘invisibilization’ of their realities and experiences, as well as ignorance regarding the multiple challenges, barriers, and human rights violations they face.  It is thus that in the majority of countries, data on violence against transsexuals and gender-diverse persons are not systematically produced; therefore, it becomes impossible to calculate the exact number of cases.

Race & Equality observes with concern how the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean continue to have the highest rates of homicides of transsexuals due to motives of prejudice and discrimination, as well as the rationale of machismo and fundamentalist ideas that ignore the diversity, freedom, and autonomy of individuals to identify and define themselves.

Notwithstanding these adverse contexts of violence, we see throughout Latin America experiences of solidarity and leadership that transcend the margins of social exclusion and make known the social demands of transsexuals.  Transsexual leaders are the ones who have been able to impact local public policies, build support networks that have evinced the violence they experience, and above all, generate creative responses for social change from spaces of exclusion.

Race & Equality, within the framework of this commemoration, calls on the States in the region to expand spaces for social dialogue with organizations of transsexuals [and] strengthen the mechanisms for investigating the violence of which this population has been the victim, so as to overcome impunity and jointly define with transsexual leaders social policies of transformation that truly impact their most immediate needs.  We are convinced that transsexuals should continue to be remembered for their transformative acts, rather than for the unpunished violence by which they are eliminated.

October 26: International Intersex Awareness Day

Within the framework of International Intersex Awareness Day, the International Institute on Race, Equality, and Human Rights (Race & Equality) calls for an end to the discrimination, exclusion, torture, patholization, unnecessary medicalization, and ‘invisibilization’ of intersex persons and their families in the region.  In this sense, Race & Equality reminds [people] that intersex persons are those whose sexual anatomy does not physically adjust to culturally-defined standards for the ‘feminine’ or ‘masculine’ body.  Having said that, what does that actually mean?  We set forth some questions and answers below so as to best approach this issue:

Is intersexuality the same as hermaphroditism?

No.  Although in the cultural imagination hermaphroditism is associated with the figure in Greek literature that has external sexual characteristics associated with the presence of a penis, a vulva, and breasts, in fact in botany and zoology hermaphroditism refers to the reproductive capacity of a plant or animal that can even self-inseminate.  When we refer to people, there is consensus in the scientific community that it is more appropriate to refer to intersexuality.  Some activists, such as Mauro Cabral, prefer to refer to themselves as intersex persons, thereby lending political value to this discussion beyond medical-legal discussions.

 Is intersexuality the same as transgenderism?

 No.  Although both concepts can converge, it is important to have a clear understanding that:

  1. Intersexuality is a biological characteristic that is associated with persons’ genetic and corporeal development (what we traditionally have called ‘sex’) and can be externally visible in the body of a person from the moment of his/her birth.
  2. Transgenderism is more associated with how a person constructs him/herself over the course of his/her life and how he/she presents him/herself to society (what we refer to as ‘gender identity’), although this process can include corporeal interventions to bring the body more into agreement with the [person’s] gender identity.

If intersexuality is biological and innate to a person, why is it necessary to have an intersex day?

  1. It is important to keep in mind that despite the fact that intersexuality if a biological reality, many people are not aware of this fact and by extension, of the existence of intersex persons.
  2. The denial of this biological reality in the educational arena (it is not taught from a young age) is also reflected in the legal sphere, which only recognizes ‘two biological sexes,’ even though the reality is much broader than that; this produces important consequences in the lives of intersex persons.
  3. The origin of this day dates back to 1996 when intersex activists protested in front of the Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Pediatrics in Boston against the genital mutilations and hormonal treatments performed on intersex persons at an early age without their informed consent.

Are intersex persons the victims of human rights violations?

Yes.  Intersex persons have been the victims of multiple violations reflected in various spheres of their lives:

  1. Their existence is denied in the legal and medical arenas, given that in many countries only two sexes are legally recognized: male and female. Nonetheless, this is changing with the recognition of gender neutrality.
  2. As a result of the foregoing, surgical procedures are imposed on intersex persons from a very early age. Current protocols are applied to them, even though that means carrying out unnecessary surgical interventions with the intention of ‘normalizing’ their genitals, without the person first giving his/her informed consent.  It should be noted that these interventions give rise to irreversible consequences in the emotional, physical, and sexual life of those individuals, including sterilization and genital mutilation, without them being medically necessary in the great majority of the cases.
  3. Human rights protection entities – such as the United Nations and the Inter-American Commission – have documents grave violations of intersex persons’ human rights, above all with relation to discrimination, ‘invisibilization,’ the lack of official information, medical treatments they tend to receive since birth and throughout the course of their lives, barriers to accessing their medical charts, and even difficulty with obtaining recognition of their legal status in public identity registries.
  4. According to the testimonies of diverse intersex persons, the nature of the interventions oftentimes gives rise to the need for multiple surgeries at different times in their lives, producing chronic pain, possible health problems, and the need to carry out extremely invasive routine procedures comparable to cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment or torture.

For all of these reasons, Race & Equality condemns the patholization and childhood genital mutilation practices endured by some intersex persons, and calls on the States in the region to assume their international obligations without further delay to protect human rights and comprehensively recognize, guarantee, and protect, with no patholization and in consultation with intersex persons, their human rights.

Cuban Officials Disrupt Launch of the Campaign “Jailed for What?” in the ECOSOC Chamber of the United Nations

New York. October 16th 2018. Cuban officials disrupted the launch of the campaign “Jailed for What?” organized by the United States Mission to the United Nations and the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor at the United States Department of State. During the event, which took place at the United Nations building in New York, a large group supporting the Cuban regimen constantly interrupted the speakers by banging on tables, stomping their hands and feet, and yelling statements such as “Cuba Sí, bloqueo no” (Cuba Yes, embargo no) and “Fuera de la ONU” (Get out of UN). Although the noise prevents the speakers from being heard properly in the camera, the disrupt did not prevent your message from being heard.

The purpose of the event was to present the human rights situation of political prisoners in Cuba, as well as describe the systematic acts of repression used by the Cuban government to silence the voices of dissidents. Ambassador Kelley E. Currie, U.S. Representative in the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations, gave opening remarks over the shouts of the Cuban officials noting that “Cuba’s political prisoners are a clear and unambiguous sign of the repressive nature of the regime. Their imprisonment represents a blatant affront to the fundamental freedoms enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.” The Secretary General of the Organization of American States, Luis Almagro, in spite of the disturbances caused by the Cuban officials, denounced the government’s use of prison sentences for political and unjustified reasons against those who speak out against its policies and politics.

Additionally, he described how Cuba has exported its repressive tactics throughout Latin American, referring to the cases of Nicaragua and Venezuela. These countries have progressively dismantled democracy within their borders, with Cuban support. Secretary General Almagro also described how activists are incarcerated as a means to keep them quiet and prevent the world from knowing about the difficult circumstances that political prisoners face, pointing out that Latin America is saying the price for not timely addressing these situations that put human rights at risk.

Ambassador Michael Kozak from the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor sarcastically thanked the demonstrators for giving an unequivocal showing of Cuba’s respect for freedom of expression and invited the audience to reflect on the worrying situation faced by oppressed Cubans: “You can imagine what it’s like in Cuba – if this is the way the government of Cuba behaves in the chambers of the United Nations, with security present…you can imagine what it would be like to be an individual Cuban citizen trying to speak their mind.”

Against the wishes of the demonstrators, the event was able to continue with the remarks of Carlos Quesada of the International Institute on Race, Equality and Human Rights (Race and Equality), who described how the Cuban governments uses various aspects of its domestic law to criminalize human rights defenders, journalists, and another who expresses opinions against the government. He also expressed that Cuba should respect the right to freedom of opinion and expression and free the 139 political prisoners that are currently suffering in poor conditions and are subject to long hours of forced labor as well punishments that violate fundamental human rights.

Alejandro Gonzalez Raga, a former Cuban political prisoner, described his experience during his time in prison and called for solidarity with current political prisoners. He also indicated the need to urge the Cuban government to allow international human rights organizations to enter the country to monitor the difficult situation. Finally, Miriam Cardet Concepcion, sister of political prisoner Dr. Eduardo Cardet Concepcion, presented remarks via a video. She was unable to speak at the event in person because the Cuban government would not let her leave the island.

Race and Equality firmly rejects the acts of intolerance demonstrated today in the ECOSOC Chamber of the United Nations and strongly condemns the constant violations of the rights to freedom of expression, press, movement, and assembly that Cubans are constantly submitted to, especially activists, journalists, and human rights defenders. Additionally, we demand that the Cuban state free the 139 political prisoners that are victims of multiple offenses against their personal integrity. We insist on the need for Cuba to reform its Penal Code and Criminal Procedure Law to eliminate the criminalization of expression and ensure that the right to due process of all Cubans is respected.

We urge the international community to increase efforts to defend and recognize the rights of all Cubans. We reaffirm our commitment to the defense of the rights of every citizen in Cuba and our will to continue fighting for the freedom of all political prisoners.

Watch the event online here: http://webtv.un.org/meetings-events/watch/jailed-for-what-plight-of-cubas-political-prisoners-meeting-called-by-the-united-states/5849574028001

Cuban civil society activists denounce the practice of criminalization by the Cuban State during the 169th Period of Public Sessions of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights

Boulder, Colorado, USA, October 2, 2018. Cuban journalists and human rights defenders participated in the public hearings of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), held on October 1 during its 169th Period of Sessions. The hearings provided an opportunity for victims of violence, repression, criminalization and harassment, to describe to the IACHR Commissioners the repressive tactics utilized by the Cuban State to silence their voices.

According to information gathered by Cuban civil society, approximately 1,633 cases of arbitrary detention have been registered during the current calendar year, up until August, of which 1,129 cases reported excess use of force against women and 504 cases against men. The government continues to use repressive tactics such as beatings, public denigration, travel restrictions and intimidation.

 

During the hearing, the activists revealed that the Cuban authorities use the Criminal Code and Criminal Procedure Code to sanction the opposition without needing to provide sufficient justification, meaning that, in the majority of cases, detentions are carried out without judicial orders backed by a legal argument. Furthermore, many of the crimes described in the Criminal Code are loosely defined, which allows for open interpretation of its contents to be used to discourage freedom of expression and/or opinion which goes against that of the government.

Although Cuban activists have addressed allegations of excessive force, arbitrary detention and intimation of civil society to many international human rights protection mechanisms on previous occasions, the situation in Cuba continues to be precarious and has worsened. Such is the case of the Ladies in White – a group of women who are heavily criminalized and attacked for their participation in public protests which demand the liberation of an estimated 140 political prisoners, throughout Cuba’s prisons.

Commissioner Joel Hernández, Rapporteur on the Rights of Persons Deprived of Liberty, responded to the information by, first, applauding the courage of the activists, and then stated that the conditions that Cuban political prisoners find themselves in violate the basic human rights of any individual. Currently, five Ladies in White are detained in prison, and may others continue to be threatened to be jailed at any moment – according to Blanca Reyes, representative of the Ladies in White, and one of its founding members.

 

In addition, the director of independent media outlet Diario de Cuba Pablo Díaz denounced the Cuban government’s repression of the media, which, according to him, has increased in recent months due to the process of transition of power from Raúl Castro to Miguel Díaz-Canel and the recent constitutional reforms, as well as from an increase in international attention to the country stemming from this summer’s Summit of the Americas, and the UN’s Universal Periodic Review – the resulting increase in reports and denunciations by independent media sources destabilize the “national order” which the government seeks to maintain. In addition, the representative of the Cuban media outlet conveyed that new patterns of repression against journalists in the island seek to leave no “judicial footprint” as opposed to previous periods of time. This results in illegal judicial processes which silence the opposition, but that do not jeopardize Cuba’s international reputation. “It is a repression that often violates even the basic norms of the government, which are already abusive in their nature,” signaled Díaz. The video below shows journalists showing different examples of violations committed by the authorities against those who practice journalism not aligned with the views of the national government.

 

In her intervention, Commissioner Esmeralda Arosemena lamented the absence of the Cuban State at the hearing as it would have represented an important step in recognizing the rights of journalists and human rights defenders by the government. To this date and in other spaces of dialogue, the Cuban government and its representatives view those individuals who oppose the views of the national government as “mercenaries” of foreign entities that seek to break the socio-political dynamics of the State; as such their actions/declarations, according to the country’s Criminal Code, are against the law. Similarly, the Rapporteur for Cuba, Commissioner Antonia Urrejola, inquired about the possibility of new spaces of dialogue to form ahead of the State’s electoral and constitutional reforms, to which Mr. Díaz responded, “We can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel, because what is happening now is a transfer of power between fingers (of the same hand). As such, our views are no more than a suit fitted to justify their interests.” Finally, the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression, Edison Lanza, expressed his admiration for the work carried out by independent media outlets and journalists in Cuba, despite the State’s blocking of independent media, and he expressed his interest in creating a detailed report on the situation freedom of expression on the island, despite the conditions of the government not allowing this to happen to this date.

Among the recommendations proposed by the group of Cuban civil society activists at the hearing, they recommended that the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights urge the Cuban State to guarantee the freedom of movement to those who try to leave the island, as well as requesting that the government allow its citizens free access to the internet and to remove the ban on independent media. Furthermore, the Rapporteurship on Rights of Persons Deprived of Liberty was asked to issue a public communication on the political prisoners in Cuba, and the Rapporteurship on the Rights of Women was asked to do the same with the situation of the Ladies in White. Finally, the petitioners urged the Commission to adopt the term “criminalization of journalistic work” to denominate acts of repressions by which the State impedes the work of distributing information, and that the Commission develop strategies of advocacy in collaboration with Cuban activists, that promote Cuba’s participation in the Inter-American System.

You can see a video of the complete public hearing here (in Spanish): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uNkdElQwPNM&feature=youtu.be 

Race & Equality Participates in the 169th Period of Public Hearings of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights with Organizations from Colombia, Cuba, and Nicaragua

Washington, D.C. September 24. Together with more than 20 organizations, the International Institute on Race, Equality, and Human Rights will participate October 1-5 in the 169th Period of Public Hearings held by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) at the University of Colorado in the city of Boulder in the United States.

During the period of sessions, Race & Equality will participate in three (3) public hearings requested by organizations from Colombia, Cuba, and Nicaragua by speaking on the state of human rights in each of these countries to rapporteurs of the IACHR and international community.  In the case of Cuba and Nicaragua, the hearings are aimed at presenting cases of criminalization and repression of activists, journalists, [and] human rights defenders by the national governments of their countries in the midst of the political crises unleashed [and ongoing] to date.  In the case of Colombia, the hearing is aimed at describing and denouncing the state of human rights of the Afro-Colombian people.

The Inter-American Commission holds several periods of sessions each year, in which hundreds of human rights defenders from the region participate, along with delegations from the States comprised of high-level authorities in the field of human rights [and] academics, among others.  In accordance with what is established by Article 68 of IACHR Regulations, the hearings are public and interested parties can freely attend without the need to register beforehand.  The hearings are broadcast online in several languages on the official IACHR website.

Below we present the schedule of the public hearings on Colombia, Cuba, and Nicaragua in which Race & Equality will participate.

Cuba denies existence of racial discrimination to the UN CERD Commitee

Washington. Sept 16. 2018. On August 16, Cuba categorically denied the existence of racial discrimination in Cuba to the group of independent experts of the United Nations (UN) that form the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) during the review of Cuba under the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. The purpose of the review is for Cuba to present information on how it has implemented action plans to combat racial discrimination.

Rodolfo Reyes Rodríguez represented Cuba at the review and stressed during his presentation on behalf of the Cuban state that Cuba does not have a structural or institutional racism problem. He also emphasized that in Cuba, racial and ethnic minorities do not experience any difference in treatment legally, politically, or socially and that the concepts of “Afro-Cuban” or “Afro-descendant” do not exist in Cuba because this population is not regarded as any different from the rest of the population. He stated that according to the results of the 2012 population census, 9.3% of the population identified as Afro-descendant because of the mixed heritage of the population. He explained that all citizens self-identify themselves as white, mixed or black just based on the color of their skin, but all are considered Cuban citizens with the same inherent rights and responsibilities. (You can read the full presentation of the Cuban representative here)

In response to the information presented, the CERD Committee issued its report of recommendations on August 31. In the report, the Committee finds that, contrary to the information presented by the Cuban state, the Afro-descendant population in Cuba continues to suffer from racism and structural discrimination as a result of the historical legacy of slavery. The report also concludes that this discrimination is demonstrated by and results in this population being unable to exercise economic, social, and cultural rights to the same extent as other Cubans. According to the report, the Committee is concerned about the challenges the Afro-descendant population faces in accessing the labor market; the low levels of Afro-descendants in decision-making positions, both in the public and private sector; and the disproportionate levels of poverty affecting this population.

In its list of recommendations, the CERD Committee also expresses great concern that the methodology used in the census does not result in objective information that accurately presents the racial composition of the country. In this regard, the Committee calls on the Cuban State to review its methodology for collecting demographic data in the census in order to design questions and strategies with the input of the Afro-descendant population that will result in their self-identification and generate more accurate results.

The CERD Committee report calls on the Cuban State to include a clear and explicit definition of racial discrimination in its Constitution, which is currently being updated.

The Committee also recommends that the State include a gender focus in its policies and strategies to combat racial discrimination in order to address the many forms of discrimination affect women, particularly Afro-descendant women, who face greater obstacles in accessing the labor market. The Committee also stressed the need to create as opportunities for women to participate in politics and to hold decision-making roles.

The CERD Committee condemned allegations of harassment, intimidation, and hostility against those who defend the rights of Afro-descendants.

Specifically, the CERD Committee’s Rapporteur for Cuba, Silvio Albuquerque, mentioned violations of the right to freedom of movement. Juan Antonio Madrazo, Coordinator of the Citizen’s Committee for Racial Integration (Comité Ciudadano por la Integración Racial), was prevented from leaving Cuba to participate in the review, and Roberto Mesa, Coordinator of the Black Brotherhood (Cofradia de la Negritud) was arbitrarily detained a few days before he was scheduled to travel. The representative for Cuban denied any acts of repression taking place against human rights defenders, instead asserting that these individuals pass themselves as human rights defenders but are mercenaries of the United States, paid to make false allegations of human rights violations. In its report, the CERD Committee laments the Cuban government’s denial of these violations and their failure to take measures necessary to investigate them and prevent them from occurring.

Race and Equality observes the statements presented by the Cuban government to the UN CERD Committee with great concern. The lack of specific and conclusive information provided by the government as well as its flat denial of the discrimination and human rights violations suffered by Afro-Cubans is further evidence that discrimination and structural racism are alive and well in the country.

Race and Equality thanks the CERD Committee for the recommendations offered to the Cuban government, which are to be implemented into the laws and policies of the country in order to effectively guarantee the protection of the human rights of all Afro-descendants in Cuba.

Join Our Efforts

Help empower individuals and communities to achieve structural changes in Latin America.

Donate Contact Us