A few days ago, we reported that the legal process initiated by the Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Cuba, Mario Alberto Urquía Carreño, against the Sovereign Grand Commander of the Supreme Council of the 33rd Degree, José Ramón Viñas Alonso, had been a shameful disappointment that only threatened to delegitimize Cuban Freemasonry, as it aimed to hide the true culprit of the alleged theft of $19,000 destined for the Llansó Masonic National Home.
On that Saturday, February 17th, a court lacking legal basis and arguments had to acquit the defendant of all charges due to "lack of evidence"; since the prosecution did not even bother to defend its case, based on Decree No. 1575 of January 22nd signed by the Grand Master, which accused Viñas of alleged violations of Masonic legislation by reporting the robbery that occurred on January 5th.
On February 22, just five days after this hearing was held in the Second Chamber of the Masonic Supreme Court of Justice, an emergency court convened by the President of the Supreme Court, Ernesto Valdés García, ended up sentencing the Sovereign Grand Commander to seven years of suspension of Masonic rights, contradicting everything contained in judgment No. 01/24.
The reactions throughout the Masonic community have not been long in coming. For everyone, it is becoming increasingly clear that the aim is nothing other than to remove José Ramón Viñas from Freemasonry, an objective long cherished by the Castro government and its repressive arm, State Security, in order to punish him in an exemplary manner for daring to openly criticize the dictatorship for its illegitimate repression of civil liberties.
If the case driven by Urquía against Viñas was ignominious, the nonsense committed in a process marked by discredit and abuse is infuriating. Faced with the unwavering support that the Masonic community paid Viñas as he emerged from the charade that aimed to convict him, the Grand Master and his henchmen could only offer a schizoid obsession that defied all legal logic in order to ultimately sanction him, thus fulfilling their commitment to State Security.
It is significant, if not symptomatic, that Mario Alberto Urquía Carreño served for a long time as President of the Masonic Supreme Court before being elected as Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Cuba, and that the current holder of that position, Ernesto Valdés García, is currently a subordinate of Urquía Carreño in his small business EDIFICA S.U.R.L.
It is also very suspicious that the President of the Court decided to remove from sight the president of the Second Chamber, Magistrate Zamir Brindis Limonta, effectively the judge, for not having "the necessary knowledge"; something unheard of considering his experience in previous Masonic trials that made him deserving of the position he holds. Even more unheard of is that neither the Secretary of the court nor the accused himself could attend due to the short notice they were given.
As you can see, the process against Viñas Alonso is full of irregularities and arbitrariness, typical of the most irrational despotism. For Judge Brindis Limonta, his suspension is "outside the law," but what he most regrets is the "misconduct" that "calls into question" the Masonic Supreme Court of Justice.
Another Freemason with extensive knowledge of Masonic legislation, who requested anonymity out of fear of reprisals, stated that the condemning sentence is completely inappropriate, since it was not imposed by those who composed the panel since the trial began. Additionally, he emphasized that from the beginning there is a flagrant violation of Masonic law, as the executive power (the Grand Master and his cabinet) cannot interfere in matters of the judicial power (Supreme Court of Masonic Justice). Not to mention that it undermines an alliance as old as the Treaty of Friendship and Mutual Recognition between the Grand Lodge and the High Chamber of the Supreme Council of the 33rd Degree.
An old Freemason broke his usual prudence by stating that "this new verdict, in which Masonic legislation is violated and after a supposed trial in which neither the accused nor the President and Secretary of the Court attended, confirms what several brothers have been warning about, which is the interference of State Security. This is probably the biggest one of all, the most blatant in these 65 years of dictatorship."
In a previous article, we drew attention to the audit that EDIFICA S.U.R.L., Mario Urquía's micro-enterprise, a Limited Liability Company where 100% of the share capital is owned by a single person, was subjected to. In other words, if Urquía is the owner and lord of his company, in order to avoid being imprisoned for the violations detected, he decided to make a deal with the State Security, even if that means trampling on the values he swore to defend.
Not by chance did the High Chamber of the Supreme Council of the 33rd Degree separate Urquía Carreño from its ranks on charges of treason. It has even come to light that this week the Board of Directors and the director of the National Masonic Home Llansó filed a complaint with the competent authorities against the Grand Master for "failure to preserve the assets of economic entities" (Article 303 of the Penal Code) and "failure to report" (Article 204).
As we have already mentioned, here we see the Cartesian honesty exhibited by Freemasonry despite the havoc caused by its leader. Urquía Carreño should have carefully guarded money intended for the elderly residents of the Home who were suffering from hunger, as verified by some senior officials visiting there. Additionally, he should have reported the theft immediately and not waited almost a week later as directed by the Sovereign Grand Commander.
The clearest aspect of this process emerges from the words of another Freemason: "We are facing a war against the repressive apparatus, which wants to get rid of those of us who are uncomfortable to them, because they know that the Freemasons are awakening and are increasingly taking on their commitment to freedoms. And the Sovereign is an example of that, thousands support him, that's why they have turned him into a target of their attacks."
What is your opinion?
SEE COMMENTS (2)Filed under: