Interim Report - Report No 305, November 1996

Case No 1805 (Cuba) - Complaint date: 20-OCT-94 - Closed

Allegations: Refusal to grant legal personality to a trade union organization; injuries, detentions, threats and other acts against officials of independent trade union organizations

1. 206. The Committee examined this case at its November 1995 meeting and presented an interim report to the Governing Body (see 300th Report of the Committee, paras. 399 to 427, approved by the Governing Body at its 264th Session (November 1995)).
2. 207. The Government sent new observations in a communication dated 12 September 1996.
3. 208. Cuba has ratified the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87), and the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98).

A. Previous examination of the case

1. 209. A number of allegations remained pending in the previous examination of the case, in which the complainant organization highlighted various acts committed against trade union officials or members of independent trade union organizations: injuries, detentions, threats, acts of intimidation and harassment, refusal to grant legal personality to the Confederation of Democratic Workers of Cuba (CTDC) and anti-union dismissal.
2. 210. Specifically, the complainant organization had stated that:
   • - according to the Confederation of Democratic Workers of Cuba (CTDC), Ms. Edith Lupe, Organization Secretary of the Trade Union Front of the CTDC, was summoned to appear on 24 May 1994 at the Department of State Security, located in the Capri district, in the Havana municipality of Arroyo Naranjo, by the commander of this body. Inside the aforementioned premises, the officer threatened her with offensive and gross language. He told her he "was going to make her disappear or imprison her for three years" if she did not relinquish her organizational activities in the CTDC ranks. After this verbal aggression, a body search was carried out and Ms. Lupe was stripped and subjected to a thorough examination. She was then threatened once again and placed in a cell which the Cuban agents use to carry out further acts of intimidation. Before she left the cell, Officer Cortina delivered a stern warning to the effect that her home might be attacked by "mobs" throwing stones and that she might be attacked and beaten by "neighbours from the district";
   • - on 2 August 1994, on Avenida 19 of the Siboney district, in the municipality of Playa, Havana, Mr. Lázaro Corp Yeras, General Secretary of the Union of Cuban Workers (USTC) and his younger son, Ray Corp Morales, were severely beaten up with sticks by three men. Both suffered serious injuries. The ICFTU states that it has reason to believe that the aggressors had links with the Cuban security forces. This assault is the fifth in less than three months against Mr. Lázaro Corp.
3. 211. Furthermore, in its last communication, dated 7 July 1995, the complainant organization had alleged that:
   • - the Department of State Security is severely harassing members of the National Executive Committee and the Trade Union Fronts which make up the Confederation of Democratic Workers of Cuba (CTDC). This is the case of Juan Guarino Martínez Guillén (President), Jesús Cárdenas López (Vice-President) and René José Montero Garay (Secretary responsible for International Relations). This organization has also submitted the necessary documentation in order to obtain legal personality but to date it does not seem to have the slightest chance of obtaining its registration;
   • - on 29 September 1994, at 1 p.m., Mr. René José Montero Garay was ordered to appear at the Unit of the National Revolutionary Police (PNR) in calle Dragones at the corner of Lealtad, in the centre of Havana. He was questioned by several officials of this repressive body, who threatened him and warned him that he himself and Martínez Guillén and Jesús Cárdenas would be sentenced to 12 and 15 years' imprisonment if they pursued their militant activities in the CTDC and if they continued defending the Cuban working class. Moreover, on 10 November 1994, at 2.40 p.m., Mr. Juan Guarino Martínez Guillén, President of the CTDC, and Mr. Jesús Cárdenas López, Vice-President of the same organization, were arrested by the Department of State Security. They were taken to the nearest police station, where they were subjected to brutal and offensive interrogation;
   • - according to the complainant organization's sources, Mr. Eduardo Lamas Campos, a member of the Trade Union Front of the "Julio Antonio Mella" sugar mill in Santiago de Cuba, Oriente, was expelled from his workplace simply because he had called for improvements in working conditions and food, since the food available was small in quantity and of very poor quality.
4. 212. In its reply, the Government cited the difficulties of locating information concerning the persons mentioned in the complaint, since none of these persons has trade union status, the events in question are not of a trade union nature, the persons concerned do not represent any group of workers, nor do they themselves have any employment relationship with any enterprise or labour body in Cuba, all of which places the Committee on Freedom of Association in a situation of having to deal with events which have no relationship with the laudable task which it carries out of defending trade union freedoms.
5. 213. Referring to various allegations, the Government made the following observations:
   • - the ICFTU complaint mentions the name of Edith Lupe. This name, as well as the description of the events, are incorrect. On the basis of some of the elements contained in the communication, it was possible to determine the real identity of the person, and to ascertain what really happened. The matter concerns Enid Amelia Luque Rosales and not Edith Lupe, as stated by the ICFTU. On 24 May, she was summoned to the 9th station of the National Revolutionary Police, located in the Capri district, and was given a warning for having carried provocative activities against public order, in accordance with the applicable legislation. She was summoned and received in one of the offices of the above-mentioned police station, not in the Department of State Security, as erroneously stated by the ICFTU. She remained in this office for a short period of time, and was not placed in any cell or subjected to any body search. The Government adds that, according to statements made by Enid Amelia Luque Rosales, the intention of the provocative acts which were carried out in the company of four delinquents was to obtain favours and guarantees from the Section of United States Interests in Havana, with a view to obtaining a visa for permanent residence in the United States. Enid Amelia Luque Rosales left the country in August 1994;
   • - as regards Lázaro Corp Yeras, the Government states that it is totally erroneous to say that he was assaulted by members of the Ministry of the Interior. If this person, as he says, was the victim of any act of violence by unknown persons, he could have made a denunciation to the police, which he did not do. Lázaro Corp Yeras left the country in September 1994, when he went to live in the United States;
   • - the Committee on Freedom of Association should be cautious about statements from persons of doubtful credibility such as those concerning the persons mentioned in the complaint, which do not give the true identity of the persons, or the address of their residence, the name and address of the workplace where they are supposedly leaders of workers' collectives, and who have not even established their status as workers at the time in question;
   • - there are 18 national sectoral trade unions in Cuba, whose members include around 98 per cent of the workers in the country. Freedom of association is exercised in all workplaces by workers' collectives and their trade union representatives are nominated and elected by the workers themselves. Under the Cuban labour relations system, the different bodies of the trade union organizations participate systematically, through a wide variety of fora, in the decision-making process on matters of interest to workers. According to the Government, the ICFTU has been misinformed; the facts have been distorted by unscrupulous persons who claim to be trade unionists, and their only purpose is to obtain personal benefit through recourse to international procedures and propaganda.
6. 214. The Committee formulated the following recommendations (see 300th Report, para. 427):
   • - the Committee requests the Government to open a judicial inquiry into the serious injuries allegedly inflicted on the trade union official Lázaro Corp and his younger son, and to keep it informed in this respect;
   • - as regards the allegations concerning the arrest of and threats and other acts of harassment against Enid Amelia Luque, Organization Secretary of the Trade Union Front of the Confederation of Democratic Workers of Cuba, the Committee requests the Government to provide the more detailed information to which reference is made in the conclusions, so that it can examine the allegations in full knowledge of the facts (in this respect, in its conclusions, the Committee had pointed out that the Government had not explained the substance of the "acts of provocation against public order" by Enid Amelia Luque and "four delinquents", and which resulted in a "warning" being delivered in the offices of the national police, or of the "demonstration" against her conduct by neighbours from the district, or the content of the "warning" by the national police (see 300th Report, para. 425));
   • - finally, noting that the Government had not replied to the allegations made by the complainant organization in its communication of 7 July 1995, the Committee requests the Government to furnish its observations on:
   • - - the refusal to grant legal personality to the Confederation of Democratic Workers of Cuba (CTDC);
   • - - the arrest and harassment of and threats against several officials of the CTDC;
   • - - the expulsion from his work centre of a trade unionist of the Trade Union Front of the "Julio Antonio Mella" central organization after he had called for better working conditions.

B. New observations of the Government

1. 215. In its communication of 12 September 1996, the Government states that the inquiries carried out have ascertained that Mr. Lázaro Corp Yeras and his son were not attacked by "persons linked with the Cuban security forces", as stated by the complainant organization without providing any proof. No formal complaint to this effect has been lodged with any police unit. It was also ascertained that Mr. Lázaro Corp Yeras is not a trade union official, nor does he represent any workers' collective or have an employment relationship with any workplace. This person left the country in September 1994.
2. 216. As regards the allegations concerning Ms. Enid Amelia Luque, the Government states that in addition to the information given in its previous reply of 13 July 1995, which it confirms, according to the inquiries made, Ms. Enid Amelia Luque caused a public scandal and disorder near her place of residence, making offensive statements to which the neighbours reacted by expressing rejection of her conduct. There were no acts of violence, only a public scandal, disrupting neighbourly relations. The Government adds that the warning in question was issued in accordance with procedural law, at a meeting with police instructors at which the person is informed of the offence and warned not to repeat it. It is not true that Ms. Enid Amelia Luque was placed in a cell or subjected to a body search. She spent a short period of time in the police office, only in order to comply with the established procedures. Ms. Enid Amelia Luque is not a trade unionist, nor is she a union official, nor does she represent any workers' collective. She does not have an employment relationship with any workplace. She left the country in August 1994.
3. 217. As regards the allegations presented by the ICFTU in its communication of 7 July 1995, the Government states that the inquiries carried out have ascertained that there is no trade union called the Confederation of Democratic Workers of Cuba in any enterprise or labour body in the entire country. The persons referred to in the ICFTU's letter dated 7 July 1995, Juan Guarino Martínez Guillén, Jesús Cárdenas López and René José Montero Garay, are not trade union officials, nor have they been subjected to threats and harassment. These persons have been neither nominated nor elected in any workplace in the country as representatives of any workers' collective. Juan Guarino Martínez Guillén left the country in March 1996.
4. 218. As regards the alleged expulsion of a trade unionist who, according to the allegations of the ICFTU, was a member of a Trade Union Front of the "Julio Antonio Mella" sugar mill, Mr. Eduardo Lamas Campos, the Government states that the inquiries carried out have ascertained that this person was transferred from his post as a disciplinary administrative measure on three occasions for unjustified absence from work and for being disrespectful to his superiors and fellow workers. These measures were imposed in accordance with the labour legislation in force, and the worker submitted to them without availing himself of the remedies laid down in the legislation. On 10 October 1992, he requested leave from his workplace in order to evade another labour sanction for the same reasons. Mr. Eduardo Lamas Campos has never been nominated or elected by the workers of the "Julio Antonio Mella" sugar mill as a union official. Eduardo Lamas Campos has a criminal record. In 1986 he was sentenced to a year's imprisonment by the courts for robbery with use of force.
5. 219. The Government states further that there is no trade union front called the Confederation of Democratic Workers of Cuba in the "Julio Antonio Mella" sugar mill. The inquiries carried out ascertained that the sugar mill has 77 trade union sections affiliated to the National Union of Sugar Industry Workers. These 77 trade union sections have a total of 5,135 members, i.e. 100 per cent coverage. The union leaders at the Julio Antonio Mella sugar mill were nominated and elected by the workers themselves, who participated in trade union activities in accordance with their rules and by-laws in full freedom and have not had to request authorization from any state body for the exercise of their activities to defend workers' interests and rights, in accordance with the provisions laid down in section 13 of the Labour Code. Mr. Eduardo Lamas Campos has never been nominated or elected as a trade union official.
6. 220. The Government specifies that at Mr. Eduardo Lamas' new workplace where he began to work after requesting leave from the "Julio Antonio Mella" sugar mill, the agricultural machinery repair shop belonging to the Agricultural Machinery Enterprise, he was again sanctioned for having taken property belonging to the workplace (700 tomato seedlings). As can be seen, the disciplinary measures imposed on Mr. Eduardo Lamas Campos were the result of indiscipline at work and bear no relation to trade union activities.
7. 221. The Government states in addition that the ICFTU is distorting the facts and relying on isolated persons who do not represent any workers' collectives and who in one way or another have acted in violation of the legislation in force, committing acts which bear no relation to trade union activities, and attempts to present them to the Committee as trade unionists when in fact none of the persons referred to has carried out any trade union activities, nor do they represent any workers' collective. The Government requests the Committee on Freedom of Association to reach definitive conclusions in this case, since these are not trade union activities such as those protected in the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87).

C. The Committee's conclusions

1. 222. The Committee observes that the allegations pending refer to different acts committed against trade union officials or members of independent trade union organizations: injuries, detentions, serious threats, acts of intimidation and harassment, refusal to grant legal personality to the CTDC and an anti-union dismissal.
2. 223. As regards the allegations concerning the serious injuries allegedly inflicted on trade union official Mr. Lázaro Corp and his younger son, the Committee notes that the Government states that (1) the inquiries carried out have ascertained that they were not attacked by persons linked with the Cuban security forces, nor has any formal complaint to that effect been lodged; (2) Mr. Lázaro Corp Yeras is not a trade union official, nor does he represent any workers' collective, nor is he in an employment relationship in any workplace; (3) he left the country in September 1994. In view of these statements and the fact that Mr. Corp left the country in September 1994, the Committee concludes that in these circumstances it does not appear possible to open a judicial inquiry into the allegations as requested by the Committee at its previous meeting.
3. 224. As regards the allegations concerning the detention, threats and harassment against Ms. Enid Amelia Luque, Secretary of the Trade Union Front of the Confederation of Democratic Workers of Cuba, the Committee notes that the Government acknowledges that this person has spent some time in a police station, albeit for a brief period, and that she had been issued with a warning, as provided in procedural law, during which the person is informed of the offence and warned not to repeat it. On the other hand, the Government denies that Ms. Enid Amelia Luque is a trade union official or member, that she was held in a cell and that she was subjected to a body search, and emphasizes that the reason for the warning was offensive statements (the Government does not indicate the content of these statements) which provoked a scandal among her neighbours. In view of the discrepancy between the complainant's and the Government's versions, the Committee points out the principle that "measures depriving trade unionists of their freedom on grounds related to their trade union activity, even where they are merely summoned or questioned for a short period, constitute an obstacle to the exercise of trade union rights" (see Digest of decisions and principles of the Freedom of Association Committee, 4th (revised) edition, 1996, para. 77). Lastly, the Committee notes that Ms. Enid Amelia Luque left the country in August 1994. The Committee wishes to emphasize that those responsible for anti-union discrimination should be sanctioned.
4. 225. As regard the allegations concerning the detention and interrogation of and threats against Juan Guarino Martinez Guillén and Jesús Cárdenas López (respectively, President and Vice-President of the CTDC) and the police summons of and threats against Mr. René José Montero Garay (Secretary responsible for International Relations of the CTDC), the Committee notes that the Government denies that they are trade union officials and have been subjected to threats or harassment, and states that Juan Guarino Martinez Guillén left the country in March 1996. The Committee observes that the Government has not expressly denied the detention and interrogation of Mr. Juan Guarino Martinez Guillén and Mr. Jésus Cárdenas López, or the police summons of Mr. René José Montero Garay. The Committee therefore once again draws the Government's attention to the principle stated in the previous paragraph concerning the summoning and questioning of trade unionists.
5. 226. As regards the allegation that the Confederation of Democratic Workers of Cuba (CTDC) was not granted legal personality despite having submitted the appropriate documents, the Committee notes that the Government states that the inquiries carried out have ascertained that there is no trade union called the Confederation of Democratic Workers of Cuba in any enterprise or labour body in the entire country. In this respect, the Committee requests the Government to state expressly whether it has received the documents applying for the granting of legal personality to the CTDC mentioned by the complainant organization and, if so, to state what action has been taken. In this respect, and in view of the fact that several allegations in this case are related to trade unionists of the CTDC, the Committee would refer to one of its conclusions formulated at its previous examination of the case (see 300th Report, para. 420), reproduced below:
   • The Committee must therefore take into account the fact that there exists only one officially recognized central trade union organization mentioned in the legislation and that on previous occasions, complaints have been made concerning the refusal to grant official recognition to trade union organizations outside the existing officially recognized trade union structure. In this same way, in its last report (1995), the Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations requested the Government "to guarantee in law and in practice the right of all workers and employers, without distinction whatsoever, to establish independent trade union organizations of their own choosing, outside any trade union structure if they so desire (Article 2 of the Convention), and the right to elect their representatives in full freedom" (see Report III (Part 4A), ILC, 82nd Session, 1995, p. 163).
6. 227. As regards the allegation concerning the expulsion of a trade unionist of the Trade Union Front of the "Julio Antonio Mella" sugar mill (Mr. Eduardo Lamas Campos) for having asked for improvements in working conditions, the Committee notes that the Government states that this person was not a trade union official and that he had been transferred from his post as a disciplinary measure, in particular for unjustified absence from work, had left his job, and had subsequently been again penalized at his new workplace for having appropriated enterprise property.

The Committee's recommendations

1. 228. In the light of its foregoing interim conclusions, the Committee invites the Governing Body to approve the following recommendations:
   • (a) As regards the allegations concerning the summoning and/or temporary detention of trade unionists, the Committee emphasizes the principle that measures depriving trade unionists of their freedom on grounds related to their trade union activity, even where they are merely summoned or questioned for a short period, constitute an obstacle to the exercise of trade union rights. The Committee wishes to emphasize that those responsible for acts of anti-union discrimination should be sanctioned.
   • (b) As regards the allegation concerning the refusal to grant legal personality to the Confederation of Democratic Workers of Cuba (CTDC), the Committee requests the Government to state whether it has received the documents applying for the granting of legal personality to the CTDC mentioned by the complainant organization and, if so, to state what action has been taken. In this respect, the Committee would refer to the comments of the Committee of Experts requesting the Government "to guarantee in law and in practice the right of all workers and employers, without distinction whatsoever, to establish independent trade union organizations of their own choosing, outside any existing trade union structure if they so desire (Article 2 of the Convention), and the right to elect their representatives in full freedom (Article 3 of the Convention)".