Ministry of Justice applies sanctions to Cuban Freemasons

The Ministry of Justice (MINJUS) of Cuba suspended official activities and denied the possibility of operating bank accounts to the Grand Lodge and the Supreme Council of the 33rd Degree for the Republic of Cuba, in response to recent events in that entity.

The news portalCubanet said that the former Grand Master,Mario Alberto Urquía Carreño He made a statement to which that media had access in which he reported that the MINJUS notified him of the suspension of the Grand Lodge due to the lack of official documentation related to the elections held on March 24 and where he himself was dismissed.

Urquía, who was expelled from that meeting fortheft accusations, insists that these elections were carried out without adequate validation by the MINJUS.

The former Grand Master clarified that the suspension of the Supreme Council of the 33rd Degree is based on a communication sent by him, where he argued the illegality of the Council, which on February 24 also expelled the Sovereign Grand Commander, José Ramón Viñas Alonso.

Viñas Alonso was the leaderFreemason who condemned the repression of the protests of July 11, 2021 in Cuba. He denounced that Urquía and State Security would be behind his expulsion.

The Grand Lodge of Cuba "is prohibited from carrying out official activities", will not be able to "issue certifications or operate bank accounts" and the offices of the Grand Secretariat and Grand Treasury will also not be able to "receive any documentation because our Grand Lodge is suspended," it said. the notice.

Mario Urquía says that he was summoned on April 5 by the MINJUS Associations Office and upon arrival "an official document was given to me addressed to me as Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Cuba of A.L. and A.M., where ] states that there has been knowledge of elections held on March 24 and the corresponding minutes of said session have not yet been received, so they have not been validated by the MINJUS."

These measures occur amid internal tensions within Cuban Freemasonry, exacerbated by the theft of $19,000 in Urquía's office last January. Although Urquía is being investigated as the main suspect, he denies the accusations and promised to return the money in question.

However, Urquía faces more accusations and was expelled during the March 24 session with cries of "thief and usurper." He is also accused of misappropriating funds during his tenure as Grand Master.

According to these actions promoted by Urquía after his dismissal, the former Grand Master would be bidding to regain his position. Cubanet points out that, if he did so, "he would be violating the division of powers of Freemasonry and his dismissal by the representation of the more than 300 lodges of the country that, on March 24, accepted his previous expulsion from the Supreme Council and, For this reason, they prevented him from opening and presiding over the annual session with cries of "get out, usurper, scoundrel, traitor."

Article 19 of Law 54 of 1985, known as the Associations Law, provides that "the Ministry of Justice may impose on associations and their directors the administrative sanctions established in the special legislation on the matter, when one or others infringe what is established in the law or in the statutes or internal regulations and the rules of relations".