Cuba 1976 Constitution (reviewed 2002) - Page 11 of 17

Table of Contents

CHAPTER X. SUPREME ORGANS OF PEOPLE’S POWER

ARTICLE 69

The National Assembly of People’s Power is the supreme organ of State power and represents and expresses the sovereign will of all the working people.

ARTICLE 70

The National Assembly of People’s Power is the only organ in the Republic invested with constituent and legislative authority.

ARTICLE 71

The National Assembly of the People’s Power is comprised of deputies elected through a free, direct, and secret ballot by the voters, in the proportion and according to the procedure that the law establishes.

ARTICLE 72

The National Assembly of People’s Power is elected for a period of five years.

This period can only be extended by virtue of a resolution of the Assembly itself in the event of war or in the case of other exceptional circumstances that may impede the normal holding of elections and while such circumstances exist.

ARTICLE 73

The National Assembly of People’s Power, upon convening for a new legislature, elects from among its deputies its President, Vice President, and Secretary. The law regulates the manner and procedure whereby the Assembly convenes and holds that election.

ARTICLE 74

The National Assembly of People’s Power elects, from among its deputies, the Council of State, which consists of one President, one First Vice President, five Vice Presidents, one Secretary and 23 other members.

The President of the Council of State is, at the same time, the Head of State and Head of Government.

The Council of State is accountable for its action to the National Assembly of People’s Power to which it must render accounts of all its activities.

ARTICLE 75

The National Assembly of People’s Power is invested with the following powers:

deciding on reforms to the Constitution according to that [which is] established in Article 141;
approving, modifying and annulling laws and, when it is considered necessary in view of the nature of the law in question, submitting it to the people for consultation;
deciding on the constitutionality of laws, decree-laws, decrees and all other general provisions;
revoking in total or in part the decree-laws issued by the Council of State;
discussing and approving the national plan for economic and social development;
discussing and approving the State budget;
approving the principles of the system for planning and management of the national economy;
approving the monetary and credit system;
approving the general outlines of foreign and domestic policy;
declaring a state of war in the event of military aggression and approving peace treaties;
establishing and modifying the political-administrative division of the country pursuant to that established in Article 100;
electing the President, Vice President and Secretary of the National Assembly;
electing the President, the First Vice Presidents, the Secretary and the other members of the Council of State;
appointing, at the initiative of the President of the Council of State, the First Vice President, the Vice President and the other members of the Council of Ministers;
electing the President, Vice President and other judges of the People’s Supreme Court;
electing the Attorney General and the deputy attorneys general of the Republic;
appointing permanent and temporary commissions;
revoking the election or appointment of those persons elected or appointed by it;
exercising the highest supervision over the organs of State and government;
keeping informed of, evaluating, and adopting pertinent decisions on the reports on the rendering of accounts submitted by the Council of State, the Council of Ministers, the People’s Supreme Court, the Office of the Attorney General of the Republic and the Provincial Assemblies of People’s Power;
revoking those provisions or decree-laws of the Council of State and the decrees or resolutions of the Council of Ministers which are contrary to the Constitution or the law;
annulling or modifying those resolutions or provisions of the local organs of People’s Power which encroach on the Constitution, the laws, the decree-laws, the decrees and other provisions issued by a superior organ, or those which are detrimental to the interests of other localities or the general interests of the nation;
granting amnesty;
calling for the holding of a referendum in those cases provided by the Constitution and others which the Assembly considers pertinent;
establishing its rules and regulations; and
exercising all other powers invested by this Constitution.

ARTICLE 76

All laws and resolutions of the National Assembly of People’s Power, barring those in relation to reforms in the Constitution, are adopted by a simple majority vote.

ARTICLE 77

All laws approved by the National Assembly of People’s Power go into effect on the date determined by those laws in each case.

Laws, decree-laws, decrees and resolutions, regulations and other general provisions of the national organs of the State are published in the Official Gazette of the Republic.

ARTICLE 78

The National Assembly of People’s Power holds two regular sessions a year and a special session when requested by one-third of the membership or when called by the Council of State.

ARTICLE 79

More than half of the total number of deputies must be present for a session of the National Assembly of People’s Power to be held.

ARTICLE 80

All sessions of the National Assembly of People’s Power are public, except when the Assembly resolves to hold a closed-door session on the grounds of State interests.

ARTICLE 81

The President of the National Assembly of People’s Power is invested with the power to:

preside over the sessions of the National Assembly and see to it that its regulations are put into effect;
call the regular sessions of the National Assembly;
propose the draft agenda for the sessions of the National Assembly;
sign and order the publication in the Official Gazette of the Republic of the laws and resolutions adopted by the National Assembly;
organize the international relations of the National Assembly;
conduct and organize the work of the permanent and temporary commissions appointed by the National Assembly;
attend the meetings of the Council of State; and
exercise all other powers assigned to him by this Constitution or the Assembly.

ARTICLE 82

The status of deputy does not entail personal privileges or economic benefits.

During the time that they spend in the effective discharge of their functions, deputies earn the same salary or pay as they do at their work center, and maintain the affiliation with it for all purposes.

ARTICLE 83

No deputy to the National Assembly of People’s Power may be arrested or placed on trial without the authorization of the Assembly—or the Council of State if the Assembly is not in session—except in cases of flagrant offenses.

ARTICLE 84

The deputies to the National Assembly of the People’s Power have the duty to perform their work for the benefit of the people’s interests, to maintain contact with their electors, to hear their proposals, suggestions, and criticism, and to explain the policy of the State to them. They shall also render an account of the performance of their duties as established by the law.

ARTICLE 85

The deputies to the National Assembly of People’s Power may be recalled by their electors at any time in the ways and means prescribed by law.

ARTICLE 86

The deputies to the National Assembly of People’s Power have the right to make inquiries to the Council of State, the Council of Ministers or the members of either and to have these inquiries answered during the course of the same session or at the next session.

ARTICLE 87

It is the duty of all State organs and enterprises to provide all necessary cooperation to the deputies in the discharge of their duties.

ARTICLE 88

The proposal of laws is the responsibility of:

the deputies to the National Assembly of People’s Power;
the Council of State;
the Council of Ministers;
the commissions of the National Assembly of People’s Power;
the National Committee of the Central Organization of Cuban Trade Unions and the national offices of the other social and mass organizations;
the People’s Supreme Court, in matters related to the administration of justice;
the Office of the Attorney General of the Republic, in matters within its jurisdiction; and
the citizens. In this case it is an indispensable prerequisite that the proposal be made by at least 10,000 citizens who are eligible to vote.

ARTICLE 89

The Council of State is the organ of the National Assembly of People’s Power that represents it in the period between sessions, puts its resolutions into effect and complies with all the other duties assigned by the Constitution.

It is collegiate; and, for national and international purposes, it is the highest representative of the Cuban State.

ARTICLE 90

The Council of State is invested with the power to:

summon special sessions of the National Assembly of People’s Power;
set the date for the elections for the periodic renovation of the National Assembly of People’s Power;
issue decree-laws in the period between the sessions of the National Assembly of People’s Power;
give existing laws a general and obligatory interpretation whenever necessary;
exercise legislative initiative;
make all the necessary arrangements for the holding of referenda called for by the National Assembly of People’s Power;
decree general mobilizations whenever the defense of the country makes it necessary and assume the authority to declare war in the event of aggression or to approve peace treaties—duties which the Constitution assigns to the National Assembly of People’s Power—when the Assembly is in recess and cannot be called to session with the necessary security and urgency;
replace, at the initiative of its President, the members of the Council of Ministers in the period between the sessions of the National Assembly of People’s Power;
issue general instructions to the courts through the Council of Government of the People’s Supreme Court;
issue instructions to the Office of the Attorney General of the Republic;
appoint and remove, at the initiative of its President, the diplomatic representatives of Cuba in other states;
grant decorations and honorary titles;
name commissions;
grant pardons;
ratify or denounce international treaties;
grant or refuse recognition to diplomatic representatives of other states;
suspend those provisions of the Council of Ministers and the resolutions and provisions of the Local Assemblies of People’s Power which run counter to the Constitution or the law or which run counter to the interests of other localities or to the general interests of the country, reporting on this action to the National Assembly of People’s Power in the first session held following the suspension agreed upon;
revoke those resolutions and provisions of the Executive Committees of the local organs of People’s Power which infringe the Constitution, the laws, the decree-laws, the decrees and other provisions issued by a higher organ or when they are detrimental to the interests of other localities or to the general interests of the nation;
approve its rules and regulations; and
exercise all other powers conferred by the Constitution and laws or granted by the National Assembly of People’s Power.

ARTICLE 91

All the decisions of the Council of State are adopted by a simple majority vote of its members.

ARTICLE 92

The mandate entrusted to the Council of State by the National Assembly of the People’s Power expires when the new Council of State, elected as a result of the periodic renovation of the former, takes office.

ARTICLE 93

The President of the Council of State is Head of Government and is invested with the power to:

represent the State and the government and conduct their general policy;
organize, conduct the activities of, call for the holding of and preside over the sessions of the Council of State and the Council of Ministers;
control and supervise the development of the activities of the ministries and other central agencies of the administration;
assume the leadership of any ministry or central agency of the administration;
propose to the National Assembly of People’s Power, once elected by the latter, the members of the Council of Ministers;
accept the resignation of the members of the Council of Ministers or propose either to the National Assembly of People’s Power or to the Council of State the replacement of any of those members and, in both cases, propose the corresponding substitutes;
receive the credentials of the heads of foreign diplomatic missions. This responsibility may be delegated to any of the Vice Presidents of the Council of State;
to perform the Supreme Chieftainship of all the armed institutions, and to determine its general organization;
to preside over the National Defense Council;
to declare the State of Emergency in the instances specified in this Constitution, reporting his decision as soon as the circumstances allow to the National Assembly of the People’s Power, or to the Council of State, if the former cannot convene, for the pertinent legal purposes;
to sign decree-laws and other resolutions of the Council of State, and the legal provisions adopted by the Council of Ministers or its Executive Committee, and to order their publication in the Official Gazette of the Republic;
any others attributed to him by this Constitution or the laws.

ARTICLE 94

In case of the absence, illness or death of the President of the Council of State, the First Vice President assumes the President’s duties.

ARTICLE 95

The Council of Ministers is the highest-ranking executive and administrative organ and constitutes the Government of the Republic.

The number, denomination and functions of the ministries and central agencies making up the Council of Ministers are determined by law.

ARTICLE 96

The Council of Ministers is composed of the Head of State and Government, as its President; the First Vice President; the Vice Presidents; the Ministers; the Secretary; and the other members that the law determines.

ARTICLE 97

The President, the First Vice President and the Vice Presidents, and other members of the Council of Ministers determined by the President comprise its Executive Committee.

The Executive Committee may decide on matters assigned to the Council of Ministers, during the periods intervening between one and another of its meetings.

ARTICLE 98

The Council of Ministers is invested with the power to:

organize and conduct the political, economic, cultural, scientific, social and defense activities outlined by the National Assembly of People’s Power;
propose the projects for the general plans for the socio-economic development of the State and, after these are approved by the National Assembly of People’s Power, organize, conduct and supervise their implementation;
conduct the foreign policy of the Republic and relations with other governments;
approve international treaties and submit them for ratification by the Council of State;
direct and control foreign trade;
draw up the draft for the State budget and, once it is approved by the National Assembly of People’s Power, see to its implementation;
adopt measures aimed at strengthening the monetary and credit system;
draw up bills and submit them for consideration to the National Assembly of People’s Power or the Council of State, accordingly;
see to national defense, the maintenance of order and security at home, the protection of citizens’ rights and the protection of lives and property in the event of natural disasters;
direct the administration of the State, and to unify, coordinate and supervise the activity of the agencies of the Central Administration and of the Local Administrations;
implement the laws and resolutions of the National Assembly of People’s Power and the decree-laws and provisions issued by the Council of State and, if necessary, dictate the corresponding regulations;
issue decrees and provisions on the basis of and pursuant to the existing laws and supervise their implementation;
revoke the decisions of the Administrations subordinate to the Provincial or Municipal Assemblies of the People’s Power adopted on the basis of powers delegated by the agencies of the Central State Administration, when they contravene superior norms to which compliance is obligatory;
propose to the Provincial and Municipal Assemblies of the People’s Power the revocation of dispositions adopted in their specific activity by the provincial and municipal administrations subordinate to them, when they contravene the norms approved by the agencies of the Central Administration of the State in the exercise of its functions;
revoke the orders of the chiefs of the agencies of the Central Administration of the State when they contravene superior norms to which compliance is obligatory;
propose to the National Assembly of the People’s Power or to the Council of State the suspension of resolutions of the Local Assemblies of the People’s Power that contravene the laws and other orders in effect, or impair the interests of other communities or the general interests of the country;
create the commissions it deems necessary to facilitate the fulfillment of the tasks assigned to it;
appoint and remove officials in keeping with the powers it is invested with by the law; and
assume any duty assigned to it by the National Assembly of People’s Power or the Council of State.

The law regulates the organization and operation of the Council of Ministers.

ARTICLE 99

The Council of Ministers is accountable to and periodically renders accounts of its activities to the National Assembly of People’s Power.

ARTICLE 100

The members of the Council of Ministers are invested with the power to:

conduct the affairs and tasks of the ministries or agencies under their care, issuing the necessary resolutions and provisions to that effect;
dictate, in the event that it is not the specific duty of another State organ, the necessary regulations to make possible the implementation of those laws and decree-laws which concern them;
attend the sessions of the Council of Ministers, with the authority to speak and vote, and submit to the consideration of the Council whatever bill, decree-law, decree, resolution or any other proposal they consider advisable;
appoint, according to the law, the officials of their agencies; and
exercise any other powers with which the Constitution and laws invest them.

ARTICLE 101

The National Defense Council convenes and prepares, during times of peace, to direct the country under state of war conditions, and during the war, the general mobilization or state of emergency. The law regulates its organization and functions.