Definitive Report - Report No 12, 1954

Case No 94 (Cuba) - Complaint date: 31-AUG-53 - Closed

1. 493. In accordance with paragraph 2 of a resolution adopted by the Economic and Social Council on 9 April 1953, the Secretary-General of the United Nations transmitted to the I.L.O by letter dated 5 January 1954 the text of two communications regarding sundry infringements of human rights in Cuba, one from the " Confederación de trabajadores de América Latina " (C.T.A.L) dated 31 August 1953, and the other dated 14 November 1953 from the " Comité de Ejidatarios de Tapachula " (Committee of Peasant Farmers of Tapachula) (Chiapas, Mexico), the "Sindicato Unico de la Construcción" (United Building Workers' Union) (Fresnillo, Mexico), and the " Sindicato National de Trabajadores de la Educación " (National Teachers' Union).

A. A. The complainants' allegations

• Allegation concerning Infringements of the Principles of Non-Discrimination
  494. 494 The complainant alleges that the officials and members of certain political parties and of certain organisations such as the National Committee for Peace, the Democratic Federation of Cuban Women and other similar groups are persecuted by the Cuban Government. These organisations are stated to have been outlawed following the Government's abolition of Constitutional safeguards. The complainant concludes that the Government has thus infringed article 2 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
  495. 495 It proceeds from the actual text that this allegation refers essentially to political organisations and not to trade union organisations. The Committee therefore considers that it is not competent to examine this allegation.
• Allegation concerning Infringements of the Right to Life and to Security of Person
  496. 496 The complainant alleges that, during the above-mentioned persecutions, more than 100 persons lost their lives and nearly 1,000 were imprisoned, and that the arrests were accompanied by inhuman treatment, particularly in the case of the member of parliament and workers' leader Joaquin Ordoqui. In the complainant's view the Government thereby violated articles 3 and 5 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
  497. 497 These allegations, in so far as they relate to the arrest of trade union officers, have already been examined in connection with Case No. 65 and consequently do not appear to call for other action.
• Allegation concerning Infringements of Parliamentary Immunity
  498. 498 The complainant alleges that several members of the two Houses of the Cuban Parliament were persecuted and arrested in violation of articles 6 and 21 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
  499. 499 This allegation is evidently of a purely political character, and the Committee considers that it is not competent to examine it.
• Allegation concerning Refusal of Due Process of Law
  500. 500 The complainant alleges that, following the suspension of Constitutional safeguards, the extension of the powers of the military, and particularly the issue of a Public Order Act which creates offences punishable with retroactive effect, Cuban citizens have been arbitrarily arrested and in general deprived of due process of law in violation of articles 7 to 11 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
  501. 501 This allegation also, in so far as it relates to infringement of trade union rights, has been examined in connection with Case No. 65. In these circumstances the Committee considers that no further action should be taken.
• Allegations concerning Interference in Private Life
  502. 502 The complainant alleges that, by illegal entry into private homes, infringement of the secret character of mail and similar acts, the Government has violated article 12 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
  503. 503 These allegations do not relate to trade union rights and the Committee considers that it should not examine them.
• Allegation concerning Refusal of Passports
  504. 504 The complainant alleges that, in violation of article 13 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Government has refused to issue passports to citizens who are not favourable to it and has withdrawn passports from persons wishing to go to such international meetings as the Peace Congress held at Vienna in December 1952 and the Continental Congress for Culture held in Chile in April 1953.
  505. 505 This allegation also, in so far as it relates to the impeding of participation by trade union representatives in international trade union meetings, has been examined in connection with Case No. 65. The Committee considers that no other action should be taken on it.
• Allegation concerning Infringements of Private Property
  506. 506 The complainant alleges that agents of the Government, in violation of article 17 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, have illegally removed the equipment of the Havana newspaper Noticias de Hoy, dispossessed the legitimate proprietors and transferred the operation of the newspaper to other persons.
  507. 507 The matter of the newspaper Noticias de Hoy forms part of Case No. 65, which has already been examined by the Committee. In these circumstances, the Committee considers that no further action should be taken with regard to this allegation.
• Allegation concerning Infringements of Freedom of Opinion and Expression
  508. 508 The complainant alleges that, in violation of article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Government has introduced a censorship, and that such acts as the suppression of newspapers and the persecution of individuals by reason of their political opinions also constitute infringement of freedom of opinion and expression.
  509. 509 This allegation, in so far as it relates to the exercise of trade union rights, has already been examined in connection with Case No. 65. The Committee considers that no other action should be taken on it.
• Allegation concerning Infringements of Freedom of Assembly and Association
  510. 510 The complainant alleges: that public ceremonies of a civic character are no longer authorised; that the offices of political parties are closed; that such organisations and others of a cultural character are persecuted; that assemblies of more than five persons in the streets are prohibited; that it is no longer safe to hold family meetings, even for the purpose of mourning; and that the Government has thereby violated article 20 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
  511. 511 The allegation concerning the suppression of freedom of assembly and association, in so far as it relates to trade union rights, has already been examined in connection with Case No. 65. In these circumstances the Committee considers that no further action should be taken on it.
• Allegation concerning the Political Situation in General
  512. 512 The complainant alleges that the Government, having been established by coup d'état, has induced conditions of violence and terror as proved by the above enumeration, in violation of articles 21 and 28 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
  513. 513 This allegation is of a purely political character and the Committee considers that it is not competent to examine it.
• Allegations concerning Infringement of Freedom of Association
  514. 514 The complainant alleges that, in violation of article 23 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Government has persecuted workers' and peasants' leaders, illegally removed democratically elected trade union officials from their posts, abolished all safeguards regarding the exercise of trade union rights, and arrested hundreds of workers. With a view to illustrating these allegations by concrete examples, the complainant gives a list of persons stated to have been arrested or persecuted. Among these persons are Mr. Lázaro Peña, Mr. Joaquin Ordoqui, Mr. Jorge Garcia Gallo, Mr. Carlos Fernández, Mr. Gonzalo Collado and Mr. Josh Maria Pérez. Finally, the complainant alleges that the Public Order Act mentioned above has been enforced with a view to abolishing all individual liberties, including freedom of association and the right to strike.
  515. 515 These allegations have already been examined in connection with Case No. 65, and the Committee considers for this reason that no other action should be taken thereon.

The Committee's recommendations

1. 516. For all these reasons the Committee considers that the complaint as a whole calls for no action on its part, either because the allegations do not relate to specific infringements of trade union rights or because they have already been examined in connection with Case No. 65.