DECLARATION OF THE CUBAN MEDICAL BRIGADE THAT WILL ASSIST SOUTH AFRICA AGAINST THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC. Pretoria, May 14, 2020.
We, members of the Cuban Medical Brigade that will assist the brother people of South Africa in the battle against the COVID19 pandemic, representatives of our people and faithful followers of the deeply humanistic principles and values of the Cuban Revolution,
DECLARE
We are honored to have arrived in South Africa, the glorious land of Nelson Mandela, precisely on April 27, Freedom Day, a date of such significance in the history of this beloved country, to which we are united by special and deep historical relationships of brotherhood and cooperation.
We deeply thank the South African people and government for the warm welcome they have given us since our arrival in this beautiful nation, which is also the land of our ancestors, our African Motherland.
We have been very emotional reading the thousands of messages of welcome, affection and love that have been sent to us by brothers and sisters from all the South African provinces. Not a few have even offered us as accommodation their own houses, in a disinterested way. On behalf of the entire Cuban people, Thank You very much!
We have successfully completed, in both Cuba and South Africa, the strict periods of preventive quarantine and we are all fully ready to depart for the different provinces of the country and immediately begin the difficult but noble task that has been entrusted to us.
It was a moral duty for us to immediately respond to the request for assistance that we were made to face, together with our South African brothers and sisters, this terrible virus. Just as we fought together, South Africans and Cubans, against the Apartheid regime, together we will face and overcome the pandemic.
Thanks to our families and loved ones, who also stepped forward, accepted the hard price of separation and distance, and supported our decision to be consistent with the principles of solidarity and internationalism in which we have been formed.
The people and government of South Africa can have absolute confidence in us. We will devote ourselves entirely to the task entrusted; we are ready to face any challenge or difficulty, no matter how hard they are. We will strictly comply with all the regulations of the South African health system in a disciplined manner and put all our experience and share our knowledge to achieve the common goal of liberating South Africa as quickly and effectively as possible from the COVID 19 pandemic.
We are ready to serve the South African people once again. We are the continuity of the imperishable legacy of our historical leaders Fidel Castro and Nelson Mandela. Nothing will deviate us even a millimeter from our mission, the most beautiful that can exist, SAVE LIVES!
We extend special thanks to the South African National Defense Forces, the Department of Health and all the workers of the Burgers Park Hotel, for the generous attentions and warm hospitality they have given us during the compliance of the quarantine period.
Long live the everlasting friendship between South Africa and Cuba!
Eternal glory to Nelson Mandela and Fidel Castro!
Long Live International Solidarity!
Ever onward to victory!