AREQUIPA, Peru – After sending a delegation of health professionals to Dominica last September, the Castro regime exported another group of 12 doctors to that country, according to the Cuban Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MINREX). on its official website.
The doctors arrived this Friday at the Douglas-Charles International Airport, where the Ambassador of Cuba, Miguel Fraga, and Dr. Lynora Fevrier Drigo, Chief Medical Officer of Dominica, received them as members of the Cuban Medical Brigade that already provides services in the nation. .
In the last four years, the Cuban dictatorship has exported more than 200 doctors to Antigua and Barbuda, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Dominica and Saint Lucia. The number has been increasing gradually, through small groups, which has made registration difficult.
The 12 professionals include specialists, nurses and technicians, who will be distributed in various health centers throughout Dominica. “Their work will be key in strengthening primary care and other essential medical services,” said Fevrier Drigo.
“The mission of our collaborators is clear: to improve the quality of life and health of the people of Dominica. We fully trust that they will achieve it with the dedication and professionalism that characterizes Cuban doctors,” said the Cuban ambassador, without mentioning that the export of these services contributes directly to the pocket of the Castro leadership while the health deficiencies on the Island worsen daily. .
On recent September 10, the Minister of Health of Dominica, Cassanni Laville, received another group of Cuban doctors and health technicians who joined the health brigade.
The Government of Dominica Information System, cited by Latin Pressreported that the delegation included specialists in intensive care, general medicine, neonatology, obstetrics, radiography, laboratory, electromedicine and nursing. The report does not specify the number of professionals.
At the reception, the Cuban ambassador, Miguel Fraga, recalled how in the case of Dominica, medical collaboration began in the 1990s and since then around 130 young people have graduated from universities on the Island.
Cuban medical missions: modern slavery
The calls “Cuban medical missions” They have been widely criticized by the international community and described by multilateral organizations as a “form of modern slavery.”
At the end of last year, the United Nations (UN) put the Cuban regime in the spotlight for their violations of the human rights and labor, especially with regard to its medical professionals deployed on “international missions.” The accusation also implicates recipient countries such as Italy, Qatar and Spain.
For his part, Tomoya Obokata, UN special rapporteur on Contemporary Forms of Slavery, in November 2023 directed a letter to the Cuban representation before the Human Rights Council in which it warns about the persistence of patterns that resemble “forced labor,” as defined by the indicators of the International Labor Organization (ILO).
The Cuban “missions”which include professionals from various areas such as doctorsteachers, engineers, and artists, among others, are described as situations of labor exploitation in the destination countries. The report indicates inadequate salaries, confiscation of passports, restrictions on movement and surveillance by agents of the Cuban Government, as well as cases of sexual harassment or violence, threats and physical violence.
Likewise, the text mentions continuous accusations based on testimonies of exported Cubans and analysis of agreements and contracts, highlighting “numerous violations of basic human rights.” The special rapporteur emphasizes the importance and value of cooperation medical Cuban at the international level, but highlights concerns about violations of fundamental rights such as privacy, freedom of expressionassociation and circulation.
In response to these allegations, the Permanent Mission of Cuba before the Human Rights Council has denied the application of pressure or reprisals to those who choose not to participate in these missions. However, Obokata maintains that many professionals are forced to participate due to coercion from the cuban regime and factors such as poverty and the limited availability of employment on the Island.
