2019
Workshop: Constitutions and Rights in Cuban history

DATA OF INTEREST

GUEST:
Alenmichel Aguiló Queijeiro


Synopsis:

Lawyer and historian Alenmichel Aguiló Queijeiro delivered a legal workshop outlining the order, structure, and dynamics of subjective rights as the basis for human rights, international mechanisms that establish these rights, and the constitutions that protect them, both employing the powers of the state in their defense as well as preventing their violation by the state.

The first day was spent dealing with the difficulty that comes with using one set of words that have several different meanings. There was collective interest in outlining Cuban constitutional history as well as conducting a preliminary analysis of the dogmatism and main contradictions contained in the most recent constitution. A number of incompatible elements were pointed out, such as: the unchecked power conferred by the constitution onto the sole political party, weakening the principle of sovereignty, and the subordination of the exercise of rights to the point of undermining them completely. The inability to assemble in order to achieve political ends that differ from the will of the party negates the effectiveness of any democratic elements and endangers the exercise of any type of rights.

During the second session, we analyzed the essential components of the philosophy of rule of law, looking closely at Mariano Aramburo's assertion that the state is a mechanism for exercising sovereignty without being the sole keeper of sovereignty. In this sense, the political community helps correct the state's course when it veers away from fulfilling the ends for which it exists.

The debate in this workshop was particularly intense given the circumstances during which it occurred: the 2019 constitution had just been adopted. As a result, we discussed how difficult it is for human rights organizations to carry out their work vis-à-vis the state's absolute power and sovereignty.

We also talked about the reasons why human rights are interdependent, so much so that when one right cannot be freely and fully exercised, it negatively affects the exercise of the rest. .


Bio:

Alenmichel Aguiló Queijeiro.
(Camagüey, 1980).

Aguiló Queijeiro has a degree in history (2004) and a master's degree in contemporary history (2012), both from Universidad de la Habana. He also holds a law degree from Universidad de Camagüey (2018). He has been a member of La Peña del Júcaro Martiano since 1997. Aguiló Queijeiro has conducted research and published articles on international relations and the history of law and diplomacy in Cuba.