Cubans will Sunday vote for or against a new
constitution that recognizes the right to private property but
maintains the one-party system.
The new charter is expected to be approved, but possibly with a
smaller majority than the current one was in 1976.
The draft constitution was discussed for three months at
neighbourhood and workplace assemblies. That led to about 760
modifications being made to it before parliament gave it a final seal
of approval in December.
"Most of the changes were a question of style," said Jose Jasan
Nieves from the independent news website El Toque.
The text recognizes the right to private property, the role markets
can play and the importance of foreign investment. It also introduces
the figure of a prime minister and reduces presidential terms from an
unlimited number to two.
However, the final version eliminates a formulation which would have
opened the way to gay marriage. It was opposed by evangelical
churches.
The constitution maintains communism as the state ideology and an
one-party system.
The charter can only enter into force if the majority of Cubans give
it their backing.
The 1976 constitution was approved by nearly 98 per cent of voters.
But this time, the use of the internet has emboldened the discussion
and a government campaign in favour of a yes-vote revealed a concern
that the constitution might not be approved with a large majority.
"I vote yes," was the motto of the campaign featuring posters in
buses or sports stadiums.
A preliminary result of the vote will be made public on Monday.
Officials prepare a polling station for the constitutional referendum in Havana, Cuba on February 17.