The text attempts to avoid stagnation, but does not open the door to decisive transformation
Cubans will vote in referendum next February 24 on the project of the new Constitution C the National Assembly in December after a period of popular enquiry . In the preamble of the project , the reference letter to the communist goal , which already existed in the 1976 Constitution, but which had not been initially incorporated in the draft, was introduced at the last minute, so that the final text is even less novel.
▲ Building of the Central committee of the Communist Party of Cubaframework Zanferrari].
article / Alex Puigrefagut
Six decades after the Revolution, Cuba leaves behind the Castro surname , with the arrival in April 2018 of Miguel Díaz-Canel as head of state, and is preparing to approve a new Constitution, which will replace the one promulgated in 1976, to symbolize this new time. This new Magna Carta, whose initial text was C the National Assembly in July 2018, then submitted to three months of popular enquiry for the presentation of amendments and finally C by the deputies on December 22, has as its main goal to seek the modernization of the Cuban State and the sustainable development of the same, without losing the essence and the main ideals of the socialist ideology of the State.
At the end of the Castro era at the helm of Cuba, the State has found it necessary to reflect in the new essay the socioeconomic transformations carried out in the country since the entrance into force of the previous Constitution, as well as to partially modify the State structure to make it more functional. It is also worth mentioning the willingness to recognize more rights for citizens, although with limitations.
When examining the constitutional project , four aspects are particularly noteworthy: the specification of the ideology of the State, the figures and Structures of the State and the government, the question of private property and finally the redefinition of citizens' rights.
Maintenance of socialism
The text C adopted by the National Assembly did not include the reference letter to the goal of achieving a communist society, a fundamental point that was present in the previous Constitution. article 5 of the 1976 Magna Carta established that society "organizes and directs common efforts towards the high goals of the construction of socialism and the advance towards a communist society".
The omission of this point was really only a change of language, since at no time was the idea of socialism abandoned, in fact, the socialist character of the Cuban State was ratified. In the words of Esteban Lazo, president of the National Assembly, this new Constitution "does not mean that we are renouncing our ideas, but rather that in our vision we are thinking of a socialist, sovereign, independent, prosperous and sustainable country". However, in case there were any doubts, after the period of popular deliberation, the Assembly introduced as an amendment the express accredited specialization to communism in the preamble of the final text, given the alleged pressure from the most immobilist sectors.
The new Constitution reaffirms the socialist character of the Cuban regime, both in the economic and social spheres, giving a leading role to the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC) as the highest power in society. The socialist nature of the Cuban State is underscored by the maintenance of the single-party system.
Presidential limits
The new Constitution includes some changes in the state structure. The most outstanding feature is that the Antillean country will have a president of the republic as head of state and a prime minister as head of government, in contrast to the current status of the same position for both functions: president of the committee state and of ministers. Everything indicates that this distinction will result more in a distribution of work than in a division of powers between the two positions, so this change will not be transcendent, given the control that will continue to be exercised from the PCC.
Another transformation in the political system is the elimination of the provincial assemblies for the creation of provincial governorships, with the goal of giving greater decentralization to administrative power and greater dependence of the legislative command on the executive.
As for the presidential term, the new Constitution limits it to five years, with the option of a single reelection for the same period. This change is important since it should lead to a rotation of members, and it is assumed that with it there would also be a renewal of ideas both within the Party and the Executive. The purpose is to avoid the stagnation of a historical generation without new ideas.
Finally, the president will be elected directly by the deputies of the National Assembly; that is to say, Cuba does not give entrance to the direct election of its leaders, but maintains the indirect election system.
Private property
The document includes several forms of ownership, including socialist ownership, mixed ownership and private ownership. The accredited specialization to the latter does not imply its formal recognition, but the confirmation of an internship whose extension the new Constitution endorses. This implies, therefore, the recognition of the market, a deeper participation of private property and the welcoming of more foreign investment to revive the country's Economics .
This need to include in the Constitution the greater participation of private property has arisen because, in many cases, the contribution of property and foreign investment has exceeded in the internship what was established in the previous constitutional framework . But this step will also lead to greater control in this area.
These changes in the economic sphere are goal at supporting the adjustments initiated by Raúl Castro a decade ago to boost economic growth and counteract the embargo established by the United States more than fifty years ago; in addition to fixing some of the country's labor force in the private sector as self-employed workers, especially in micro and small enterprises.
Citizen's rights
Finally, as regards the redefinition of citizens' rights, the constitutional project establishes a new functioning in the interaction of the State with the population through the flexibilization of economic, legal and civil rights. From the approval of the new text, the Cuban State must guarantee citizens the extension of Human Rights, although only in accordance with the international treaties ratified by the Caribbean country.
This, which despite this limitation could be seen as an opportunity for citizens, in reality has little of an opening, because although Cuba has signed United Nations agreements on political, cultural, civil and economic rights, it has not actually ratified them. Thus, in principle, Cuba should not be obliged to recognize these rights.
Another highlight of the introduced relaxation is article 40, which penalizes discrimination "on grounds of sex, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, ethnic origin, skin color, religious belief, disability, national origin or any other distinction detrimental to human dignity". In the initial text that passed for deliberation by the instructions , the recognition of marriage between persons of the same sex was introduced, but citizen rejection led to an amendment that finally withdrew the express protection of same-sex marriage.
After analyzing the main novelties of the constitutional project , it can be determined that the Cuban regime perceives a certain need for change and renovation. The new Constitution goes somewhat in that direction, but although it tries to avoid stagnation, it does not open the door to a decisive transformation either: neither complete continuity -although there is more of this- nor revolution within the system. It is clear that the new generation of leaders, with Miguel Díaz-Canel at the helm, can be seen as a continuity of the Castro regime, for the simple fact that the Castros directly determined the successor, in addition to the fact that many of their ideals are the same as those of the generation that made the revolution. But on the other hand, Cuba is certainly forced to slightly modify its course in order to be more present in the international system and to seek a more functional state and government.
(Updated January 3, 2019)
