Julio Fernández Bulté

Lawyer, jurist, professor, panelist on the Escriba y Lea television program, National Prize for Social Sciences 2007.

He was born in Ciudad de La Habana, studied Law and Philosophy and Letters at the Universidad de La Habana, where he graduated as a Doctor of Law in 1962.

After active participation in the insurrectional struggle against the tyranny of Batista, he carried out outstanding work in the banking union movement, in which he held the position of Organizing Secretary and General Secretary by substitution of the National Union of Bank and Insurance Workers, and General Secretary of the Union Section of the Central Office of the National Bank.

In August 1961, he directed the currency exchange in the province of Oriente. Already graduated in Law, he began working as Legal Advisor to the Central Office of the National Bank of Cuba, while intensely practicing his profession until 1965 when he was called by Salvador Vilaseca to take the position of General Secretary of the Universidad de La Habana.

Since 1967 he combined that responsibility with teaching at the then School of Legal Sciences, where he achieved, through competitive examination, the rank of Assistant Professor. In 1972 he won through competitive examination the rank of Full Professor.

At the Universidad de La Habana, and later at what became known as the Faculty of Law, he held multiple positions, including: Director of the Language Center "René Ramos Latour" of the Universidad de La Habana; Director of Introductory Courses and Worker Courses of the then Faculty of Humanities; President of the University Disciplinary Commission; member of the Scientific Council of the University and of the Faculty of Law; member of the University Methodological Commission; Head of the Department or Chair of Civil and Family Law; Head, for more than eight years, of the Department of Basic Legal Studies of the Faculty of Law; Academic Vice Dean of that Faculty, and finally Dean of the Faculty of Law between 1987 and 1992.

He has taught in all the subjects of the Department for more than 37 years and is the author of a tremendous number of textbooks used in the teaching of Law throughout the country. Among these, the following deserve mention: History of the State and Law in Antiquity, 2 volumes; Manual of General History of the State and Law; Readings in Law; History of Political and Legal Ideas, Volume I and History of Political and Legal Ideas (Rome); General History of the State and Law II, from 2000; Philosophy of Law, from 1999; Theory of the State and Theory of Law, both from 2001.

Offprint of Roman Public Law, from 2001. History of the State and Law in Cuba, from 2005. Additionally, he has directed several collectives of authors who have written other Law textbooks, such as the Manual of Roman Law; Manual of Theory of the State and Law; Selection of Readings on Theory of the State and Law; Manual of American and African Law. In total, he is the author of more than fifteen Law teaching texts.

He is also the author of dozens of articles and essays published in Cuba and abroad, particularly in journals in Rome, Venezuela, Colombia, Spain, and other countries. His participation in several Latin American Congresses of Roman Law and in interregional meetings on that discipline stands out.

In recent years he dedicated his work to the topics of Human Rights and wrote several works on that subject. At the same time he participated on five occasions in the Human Rights Commission in Geneva, as legal advisor to the Cuban mission or as representative of some Cuban non-governmental organization.

He participated in the preparation of the Second World Conference on Human Rights, in Costa Rica, in 1993; in the Second World Conference on Human Rights in Vienna and in other international events on the subject. In Cuba he participated in almost all events held on that subject, especially in three held in cooperation with the Inter-American Institute of Human Rights.

He taught at several foreign universities, including: the University of Buenos Aires, lecture series; at the University of La Laguna, Canary Islands; at Alcalá de Henares; in San Sebastián, Euskadi; at the "Lomonósov" University of Moscow; at "Notre Dame" in Indiana, United States and others.

He was principal professor of Theory of the State and Law, and occasionally also taught Roman Law and wrote the textbook for a new subject of which he is the author of its Curriculum, Philosophy of Law.

For fifteen years he was President of the National Commission that analyzed and approved Law Study Plans throughout the country.

For almost three years he directed and conducted the third edition of the Universidad Popular del Aire, which was founded by Julio Antonio Mella and had a second edition under the direction of Jorge Mañach.

He actively participated in the struggle for the return of the child Elián González, kidnapped in the United States, and in that regard he advised on the matter and participated in more than fifteen Round Tables.

He also worked on the issue of the arbitrary imprisonment of five Cuban patriots in Miami.

On June 5, 2000, he was invested in a solemn ceremony in the Assembly Hall of the Universidad de La Habana with the highest teaching rank conferred by the institution, Professor Emeritus.

He is a Doctor of Legal Sciences. He defended the Doctorate in Sciences and achieved it. Member of the Tribunal for the awarding of Scientific Degrees in Cuba.

He participated in many investigations, among which we can point out:

Ø Investigation on the Asiatic mode of production and the emergence and structure of Oriental despotic states.

Ø Legal basis of feudal relations, regarding the feudal-vassal relationship.

Ø Essence of Roman Public Law and its influence on constitutional models of the eighteenth century.

Ø The objective and subjective elements that influence the non-application of Law in Cuba, at the request of the National Assembly of People's Power.

Ø The non-normativist nature and new dimension of the category of legality.

Ø Content of the category "legal regulation of society."

He received, among others, the following honors:

Ø Medal for Clandestine Fighter.

Ø Medal for the 30th Anniversary of the Armed Forces.

Ø Medal for the 40th Anniversary of the Armed Forces.

Ø Medal Distinction for Cuban Education.

Ø "Pepito Tey" Medal

Ø "José María Mendive" Medal

Ø Medal as founder of the CDR.

Ø "Félix Elmuza" Medal

Ø "Frank País" Order Medal of the first degree.

Ø Pinar del Río Shield Medal.

Ø Medal as founder of the Universidad de Pinar del Río.

Ø Medal as founder of the Pedagogical Institute of Pinar del Río.

Ø Seal for the 25th Anniversary of the Union of Jurists of Cuba.

Ø Seal for the 270th Anniversary of the Universidad de La Habana.

Ø Medal for the 50th anniversary of the FAR

Ø Seal for the 85th anniversary of the FEU and 50th anniversary of the assault on the Palace.

For several years he was awarded as the best professor of the University in the area of Educational Teaching Work.

In the last year he was recognized with the Rector's Prize for his work in University Extension.

For three years the University Student Federation has awarded him the Special Prize "To a Teacher."

In the year 2000 he was given the status of Professor Emeritus of the Universidad de La Habana.

In the year 2001 the National Council of the Union of Jurists of Cuba granted him the status of honorary member of the Union.

In that same year, the UNJC and the President of the National Assembly of People's Power awarded him a diploma for his outstanding legal work in defense of the Five Heroes imprisoned by the empire.

On the occasion of the Sixth Anniversary of the Round Tables he received a diploma certifying his outstanding participation in them, signed by Com. Fidel Castro.

On November 30, 2005, he defended his Doctorate in Sciences, with the scientific work of his entire life, making him the only jurist, at this time, with that scientific degree.

He was granted the status of honorary member of the Association of Educators of Cuba.

He was appointed president of the Jury that awarded the National Prize for Social Sciences 2007, directed its debates and awarded the prize to essayist Fernando Martínez Heredia.