Deputy Minister of Public Health Tania Cruz today welcomed the first group of the medical brigade that had been working in Jamaica, following that country’s unilateral decision to terminate its cooperation agreement with Cuba.
“Welcome home!” exclaimed the official, “and you return having honourably fulfilled your mission. We welcome you as an example of humanity and solidarity,” she emphasised.
You arrive with the recognition, too, of a people who will not forget your presence. They will not forget that you were the first to reach places where no doctor had gone before, in areas that are difficult to access and in disaster zones, she emphasised.
A people with whom we share bonds of friendship are deprived of healthcare services; more than 4,700 Cuban workers have provided services there over the last 30 years, she noted.
Taking stock of the brigade’s work on that neighbouring island, the deputy minister highlighted that more than eight million patients were treated, and 74,000 surgical procedures were performed.
There were also 7,295 deliveries, 91,000 lives were saved, and 25,000 patients regained their sight through the ‘Operation Miracle’ ophthalmological programme.
Cuba stands ready to offer its assistance to those most in need, without any economic, political or social conditions, Cruz stated.
Earlier, the head of the medical brigade, Dr Enrique Martínez, emphasised that the history of Cuba’s medical collaboration in Jamaica speaks for itself. We have been providing high-quality care in institutions across the country, in the most remote corners of its geography, where our work will not be forgotten.
On 4 March, the Cuban Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported that the Jamaican Foreign Ministry had informed the Cuban Embassy in that country of its government’s unilateral decision to terminate the health cooperation agreement that had linked the two nations for decades.
With this action, the Jamaican government is bowing to pressure from the US government, which is unconcerned about the health needs of its Caribbean neighbours, the statement denounced.