CABA’s International Human Rights & Legal Advocacy conference set for October 6
Two Florida Supreme Court justices to discuss the importance of an impartial judiciary
Florida Supreme Court Justices John Couriel and Jorge Labarga are scheduled to talk about the importance of an impartial judiciary at the Cuban American Bar Association’s October 6 one-day human rights conference “International Human Rights & Legal Advocacy: The Cuba Case.”
The conference — set for 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. at the Florida International University College of Law in Miami — seeks to apply Cuba as a case study to explore the practical, professional, and ethical implications of advocacy for basic human rights and legal protections in the international arena by:
- Exploring international law through primers on international legal mechanisms and institutions;
- Reviewing the history of individual rights in Cuba through analysis of its various constitutions and exploring its current laws;
- Considering the role of the judiciary; and
- Discussing the application of individual human rights concepts, such as: freedom of association, freedom of speech and artistic expression, and the role of civil society in advancing fundamental liberties.
The keynote address will be given by former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights Armando Valladares Perez, a former Cuban political prisoner and Cuban-American writer.
Other speakers include:
- Rosa María Payá Acevedo, a Cuban democracy activist and human rights defender;
- Ambassador Martin Palous, director for Václav Havel Program for Human Rights and former ambassador of the Czech Republic to the United Nations;
- Laritza Diversent, a Cuban lawyer, independent journalist, human rights defender with Cubalex;
- Eliexer Márquez Duany, known as “El Funky,” a Cuban urban musician/rap artist;
- Danilo Maldonado Machado, known as “El Sexto,” a Cuban graffiti artist and human rights activist;
- Omar Lopez Montenegro, a Cuban democracy activist and human rights defender;
- Nora Gamez Torres, a journalist at el Nuevo Herald/The Miami Herald;
- Michael J. Bustamant, the Emilio Bacardi Moreau chair in Cuban and Cuban-American Studies at the University of Miami;
- Jose Jasan Nieves, editor-in-chief of El Toque;
- Tawia Baidoe Ansah, a Florida International University law professor;
- Luis Martinez-Fernández, Pegasus Professor of History at the University of Central Florida;
- Samuel J. Dubbin of Dubbin & Kravetz;
- Jose A. Villalobos of Akerman;
- Aldo M. Leiva of Baker Donelson Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz;
- Gladys Pérez Villanueva, Esq.; and
- Eduardo Palmer of Eduardo Palmer, P.A.
For each topic explored, CABA is seeking CLE credit from The Florida Bar.
For more information and registration information, visit CABA’s website.
