The Cuban Government launched the formation of Territorial Defenders that will have the objective of serving and protecting sectors vulnerable populations.
Alejandro Redondo Ramos, coordinator of the Legislative Activity of the Ministry of Justice (Minjus), declared to the Cuban News Agency (ACN) that this Ombudsman will be the institution in charge of protecting, guaranteeing and restoring the exercise of the rights of citizens in this situation in the civil, family, labor and commercial environment.
The Ombudsman will be the institution in charge of protecting, guaranteeing and restoring the exercise of the rights of people in situations of vulnerability in the civil, family, labor and commercial environment.@AleRedMos pic.twitter.com/T4GnRHz7rr
— Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Cuba. (@CubaMinjus) February 21, 2023
His work will include caring for girls, boys, adolescents, people with disabilities, the elderly, victims of discrimination or violence, among other cases, the official said.
And the defender will have among his functions to legally represent the exercise of the rights of these people, without distinction of age group, in notarial, judicial and extrajudicial venues.
It is also in charge of coordinating the management and harmonious solution of family conflicts with the Mediation Offices, as well as with State bodies and social and mass organizations, represented by their respective territorial instances, adds the outlet.
The Family Code of 1975 did not recognize this institution, so it is a completely new structure that starts from two normative bases: the Family Code and the Process Code, assures Redondo Ramos.
In their final provisions, both laws entrust the Minjus with the implementation of an Ombudsman, so it is necessary to create an organizational structure in the central body of the body to fulfill these constitutional mandates.
According to the coordinator, this institution will put Cuba in the forefront, because at the international level, where there are other ombudsmen, they do not operate on the basis of private relations.
In this way, the publication adds, it is established that the defender must represent people in vulnerable situations who require tutors, representatives or support until they are provided with these.
It will also be present in cases where, having guardians, there are conflicting interests or if the specific situation prevents them from adequately defending their assets and rights.
According to Redondo Ramos, as soon as a person in a vulnerable situation goes to the ombudsman or their case is detected through other institutions, their ombudsman will be chosen and an analysis of their situation will be carried out with the support of consultants from different specialties.
It is also in charge of coordinating the management and harmonious solution of family conflicts with the Mediation Offices, as well as with State bodies, social and mass organizations, represented by their respective territorial instances.
After the work is done, and if the situation warrants it, the defender must refer the case to other competent institutions such as the National Revolutionary Police or the Attorney General’s Office, the official said.
He added that the creation of an Ombudsman Department within the Provincial Directorates of Justice, and a Directorate in the Minjus for its coordination and methodological control, are foreseen.
