It is mandatory to attend the summons of the authority[1] provided that the established legal requirements and formalities are met[2].
He first requirement An official summons must state the name and position of the issuing officer, prosecutor, or court. In practice, this procedure is used by state security agents, but not directly; they use police officers and, more recently, after immigration reform, immigration officers—all officials of the Ministry of the Interior.
According to the legislation, the police When it becomes aware of a criminal act, it begins to carry out the necessary procedures.[3]. The official summons is one of them. However, according to the law itself, these officials They are agents or assistants of the authority[4] y They can only carry out the procedure of delivering the summons.. The police can make an arrest[5]; But they cannot cite a person.
Here is the new police summons that journalist Luz Escobar has received. @Luz_Cuba from the newspaper @14ymedio for an “interview” next Monday (the second in five weeks) that will surely be full of pressure for her to abandon her news job. #GobiernoLeTemeAPrensa pic.twitter.com/CORYxhgL8u
— Yoani Sánchez (@yoanisanchez) January 13, 2018
He second requirement It is to record the name, surnames and address of the person summoned to appear before the authority and the third is to express specifically the objective of the procedure, it is assumed that it is to declare about allegedly criminal acts. In practice, this never happens.
It is common for law enforcement officers or auxiliaries to state in the summonses that the person must appear “for a conversation”", "for define your situation”", "for interview”"and similar arguments. This distorts the purpose of the summons, which should more accurately reflect the relationship between the summons, the investigation, and the crime.".
The cfourth requirement The summons must specify the place, date, and time the person summoned must appear before the authority. It is also common practice for law enforcement officers or agents to issue a summons and then leave the person waiting all day to be "interviewed.".
He fifth requirement The requirement of the law is to warn the person summoned that, if they fail to appear without just cause, they will be fined. fifty pesos, and if it is a second summons, he may be charged with the corresponding crime.
It is common that, with the full intention of coerce, The agents of authority threatened the defenders with a fine of 500 pesos (national currency) or with prosecution for the crime of disobedience.[6], which provides for a penalty of 3 months to 1 year or a fine of 100 to 15000 pesos national currency, to the individual who disobeys the decisions of the authorities or public officials or the orders of the agents or assistants of those issued in the exercise of their function.
Official summonses that do not meet the five requirements detailed above are void.[7], but if the person cited agrees with the same, this It will have all its effects, as if it were practiced according to the law..
Most citizens are unaware of this. In most cases They accept illegal citations as valid, which weakens the conception of the State of Law, which requires state institutions, when exercising power, to submit to legal forms pre-established by the political representatives of society (in the National Assembly) and controlled by the courts.
In this case, the Criminal Procedure Law grants impunity to state bodies for their own actions. It also favors... arbitrariness, which it has the obligation to ensure compliance with legality.
Official summonses that do not comply with established legal requirements are the most documented arbitrary actions by activists, who by accepting them place themselves at risk and increase their vulnerability.
Security agents subject them to harsh interrogations, employing cruel and degrading treatment, such as blackmail and threats against family members, especially mothers, in search of information about their activities. There have been reported cases of individuals being detained after appearing in response to a summons from the authorities.
[1]Article 86 of the Criminal Procedure Law. Article 176 establishes that witnesses are summoned in the manner established in Article 86.
[2] The Criminal Procedure Law is clear in this regard, in its article 167 it establishes that all persons residing in the national territory, who are not prevented or excepted, have the obligation to attend the call of a competent authority to testify as a witness on the facts being investigated, provided that they are summoned with the formalities established by law.
[3] Section 3 of Article 119 of the Criminal Procedure Law
[4] Articles 111 to 115 of the Criminal Procedure Law
[5] Article 243 of the Criminal Procedure Law
[6] Article 147 of the Penal Code defines the concept of disobedience and the sanction to be imposed
[7] Article 90 of the Criminal Procedure Law states that: “the… summonses… that are carried out without observing the provisions of this title are null and void.”.