Cuba: with much to contribute to the Hemispheric Dialogue in Peru

Cuba has positive experiences to share on the issues to be discussed at the VIII Summit of the Americas: democratic governance versus corruption, said Yamila González Ferrer, vice president of the National Union of Jurists of Cuba.

In exclusive statements to the Cuban News Agency through social networks, González Ferrer, who is participating in the Hemispheric Dialogue prior to the VIII Summit in Lima, Peru, considered that the island is in a position to promote sustainable development and be effective in the fight against corruption, the main topics of discussion of the event.

The representative of the Cuban civil society participates in the Hemispheric Dialogue as part of the coalition number 15 of the Civil Society Forum of the VIII Summit, which is called for a respectful and inclusive world, and integrated by 226 actors from 19 countries of the region.

González Ferrer, who is also secretary of the Cuban Society of Civil and Family Law of the National Union of Jurists of Cuba, said that the Hemispheric Dialogue will allow spokespersons to express, in an atmosphere of dialogue and respect, the results of the work of the 28 coalitions approved for the meeting in Peru, as well as criteria, assessments and recommendations to governments on the agreed thematic axes.

The concepts of democratic governance, the fight against corruption and sustainable development are closely interlinked with each other and with the fundamental concept of effective citizen participation. They cannot express themselves independently, and in Cuba there is a will, expressed in public policies and legal regulations, that points directly towards these objectives, she said.

She added that Cuban civil society organizations are working to contribute to these public policies and purposes, such as the National Union of Cuban Jurists, which has among its priorities the strengthening of the professional ethics of lawyers and their role in the fight against corruption.

She said that the Coalition for an Inclusive and Respectful World in the Hemispheric Dialogue will raise concerns at today's meeting in the South American country regarding the format of coalitions adopted for the forum and their impact on the participation and exchange of organizations and social actors.

It will also highlight the multi-causal nature of corruption and the need for a comprehensive, transparent and cooperative approach, involving all members of society in its confrontation.

Corruption should not be associated with certain geographic regions or levels of development, and its treatment in the continent should take into account the persistence of high levels of social and economic inequality, said the expert from the National Union of Cuban Jurists, a non-governmental, non-profit organization that brings together more than 16,000 lawyers on the island.

She told ACN about the present manipulation in addressing the issue of corruption and stressed that national and regional policies to prevent and combat this scourge must respect the principles enshrined in the Proclamation of Latin America and the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace, endorsed by the region's leaders.

Before saying goodbye, at dawn, she highlighted the principled position of Cuban civil society to defend the sovereignty of the island and its self-determination, and therefore will not share any space with mercenary elements and organizations that respond to the interests of a foreign power, with a clear agenda of subversion and violence against the Cuban people.

The scenario of the Panama Civil Society Forum three years ago was used to try to invest some foreign powers' mercenaries as human rights fighters, but the legitimacy of the organizations and associations that represent the vast majority of Cubans prevailed.