Administrative Silence on the Judicial Route / Laritza Diversent

Article 63 of The Constitution of the Republic of 1976, revised in 1992, provides that “Every citizen has the right to address complaints and petitions to the officials, and to receive the appropriate attention or responses within a reasonable time, according to the law.”

Article 63 of The Constitution of the Republic of 1976, revised in 1992, provides that “Every citizen has the right to address complaints and petitions to the officials, and to receive the appropriate attention or responses within a reasonable time, according to the law.”

What happens if the authority remains silent before a protected citizen request in exercise of the right of petition?

The interested party can understand his request to be refused, by administrative silence (negative silence).

Administrative acts resulting from silence may be appealed through both the administrative agency and the courts. They take effect upon the expiration of the deadline for decision and notification (or attempted notification) of the specific ruling, as if it had actually been issued.

The deadlines for filing appeals are to be calculated from the expiration of the deadline for decision and notice.

The Law of Civil Procedure, Administrative and Labor, in effect in Cuba since 1977, recognizes the right of citizens who do not receive a response to bring suit against an administrative official who does not resolve any petition within the legal deadline. Interested parties may consider their applications rejected, and take appropriate action against the refusal.

But the procedure is virtually obsolete on the island, resulting in part from the legal ignorance that Cubans suffer from, and because few lawyers dare to pursue a lawsuit against a government representative.

Note: To proceed on the judicial route it is necessary to exhaust the administrative remedies (appealing all issues at every available level).

September 10, 2010