MADRID, Spain.- The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) presented its 2023 Annual Report, a crucial reference for the situation of human rights in the hemisphere. The document, released this Thursday, April 25, is an essential tool for access to information and institutional transparency, according to statements by the president of the IACHR, Roberta Clarke.
The report addresses, throughout six chapters, institutional achievements and an exhaustive analysis of the regional human rights situation.
In its section dedicated to Cuba, the IACHR denounced “serious violations” of democratic principles. The Commission included the Island in Chapter IV-B due to the persistent violation of the fundamental elements and institutions of representative democracy, as stipulated in the Inter-American Democratic Charter.
The report highlights three structural reasons for this inclusion: the continuity of a single-party political model, the concentration of power in the conduct of public affairs, and the subordination of the administration of justice to political power. Furthermore, it points out the persistent harassment and arbitrary violations of fundamental rights in Cuba, especially against human rights defenders.
Arbitrary arrests, fines and inhumane conditions in Cuban prisons are a cause of deep concern for the IACHR. The lack of updated official data and allegations of torture and ill-treatment against political prisoners underline the urgency of the situation.
The IACHR called on the Cuban regime to adopt effective measures to guarantee and protect human rights defenders, activists, journalists and social leaders. He also urged the State to refrain from arbitrarily interfering in the exercise of human rights and to guarantee an environment conducive to this.
In the words of the Executive Secretary of the IACHR, Tania Reneaum Panszi, the Annual Report is a crucial tool that addresses human rights situations throughout the region, allows States to take concrete measures to guarantee rights and promotes accountability and institutional transparency.
Also this week, Amnesty International presented its annual report on the situation of human rights in the world, documenting concerns in 155 countries during the year 2023.
In its study on Cuba, the organization highlighted the continued repression of dissent through harassment, persecution and imprisonment of activists, political opponents and journalists. In addition, there were reports of obstacles and attacks on human rights defenders, who in some cases remained in prison without due process. Last year, the Island continued to suffer a humanitarian and economic crisis, with shortages of food, fuel and electricity. Discrimination persisted, affecting the Afro-descendant population, women and girls, LGBTI people, political dissidents and members of religious communities, the document denounces.
