They demand the resignation of the Secretary General of the OIJ for supporting the Cuban dictatorship

The actions of the Secretary General of the International Youth Organization for Ibero-America (OIJ), Alexandre Pupo Quintino, has provoked a growing wave of questioning following a series of public interventions that various sectors consider incompatible with the institutional neutrality required of an organization that should represent all the youth of 21 Ibero-American States.

Between March 18 and 22, 2026, the Secretary General participated in Cuba in activities related to the so-called “Convoy Our America”, identified by his critics as a space with strong political and ideological content. During that visit, he held meetings with Cuban State authorities, including the dictator Miguel Díaz-Canel, and made public statements as Secretary General of the organization. This participation has been pointed out by youth organizations as a possible use of the institutional weight of the office in an environment of strong political burden, without it being publicly clarified whether there was a formal mandate from member States for such representation or if the organization's public resources were used

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The case has also had a notable echo on social networks, where hundreds of users have reacted to the episode and related posts have accumulated hundreds of thousands of views. Among the most impactful reactions, the activist Agustín Antonetti stood out, whose message about the case generated wide dissemination and public interaction. The publication also received an interaction from the Undersecretary of State of the United States, Christopher Landau, a circumstance that increased the international visibility of the issue

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There had already been previous controversies that had raised concerns about the Secretary-General's institutional conduct. Among them, the public support expressed for Cristina Fernández de Kirchner during her judicial process in Argentina, a gesture that different sectors consider to be improper intervention in the internal affairs of a member State.

In addition, Mr. Pupo has openly stated on his social networks that he is a member of the party of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in Brazil, and he is attributed links with sectors of Kirchnerism, as well as participation in spaces promoted by the so-called Puebla Group.

In January 2026, through the organization's official channels, a statement was also released condemning the U.S. intervention and the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, in a highly sensitive context at the regional level and which, according to official sources, did not reflect a full consensus among member States.

Faced with this accumulation of episodes, several youth groups, led by the Latin American Youth Network for Democracy, issued an open letter on March 20, 2026, asking for immediate explanations about participation in Cuba and demanding the immediate resignation of Mr. Pupo.

The repetition of this type of action seriously compromises the credibility of the OIJ, generating a progressive deterioration of trust between member States and affecting the body's legitimacy as a neutral space

for regional cooperation.

Thus, voices are growing, demanding institutional clarity, accountability and an urgent resignation to restore and preserve the impartiality that constitutes the basis of the Ibero-American system of cooperation in the field of youth.