Cuba's Parliament approves new criminal procedure law
Cuba's parliament on Thursday approved a new Criminal Procedure Law that reinforces the guarantees of the accusatory system and the rights of victims and responds to constitutional requirements.
The legislation will replace the current Criminal Procedure Law, which has been in force for over 40 years. Its drafting considered the knowledge of judges, magistrates, academics, prosecutors, lawyers, and specialists from various institutions.
Supreme Court President Ruben Remigio presented the initiative that draws on the best international experiences and regulations and over 100 doctoral and master's diploma papers in Cuba and abroad.
In its articles, the Criminal Procedure Law develops a lot on people's rights and guarantees, contemplated in several pieces of the Constitution approved in 2019.
According to Remigio, the legislation regulates with greater precision the nature of the precautionary measure of preventive deprivation of liberty and the right of the defendant to have legal assistance from the beginning of the process.
It endorses the presumption of innocence until there is a final conviction and establishes it in favour of the defendant without sufficient evidence against him.
The law establishes the right against self-incrimination, the right to be informed of the charges, and the right to be tried by a pre-established court and prior criminal laws.
It sets the right of the defendant to communicate immediately and to receive visits from family members or relatives if they are detained.
The regulation distinguishes the victims' rights, including their access to criminal justice, protection, and reparation of damages, according to the opinion presented by Congressperson Jose Castañeda.
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