The same communist healthcare system the American left says we should emulate and ships enslaved doctors all over the world can’t take care of Cuba’s gravely ill children. The reality is that the Castro dictatorship’s corruption and mismanagement has left the healthcare system in Cuba on the verge of collapse. The situation has gotten so unbearable, desperate Cuban mothers staged a protest in the totalitarian state, knowing there would be dire consequences for their actions.
Via CiberCuba (my translation):
Cuban mothers protest outside the Ministry of Health in Havana with their children
This Friday, activist Diasniurka Salcedo Verdecia stood alongside a group of mothers whose children suffer from severe medical conditions in front of the Ministry of Public Health (MINSAP), located on 23rd Street in the heart of Vedado, Havana.
The purpose of the protest is to demand greater attention and a better quality of life for these minors. The mothers arrived at the location accompanied by their children and their medical records.
“We are demanding a better quality of life for all these vulnerable children whom the dictatorship ignores. All these children are dying because of a dictatorship,” said Salcedo Verdecia while broadcasting from the street.
According to the activist’s claims, some mothers coming from Pinar del Río to join the group were detained near the vicinity of MINSAP.
“If we are not doing anything wrong, why are they detaining the mothers who were on the other corner? I wonder,” complained the activist in the presence of two officials who crossed the street to try to persuade the mothers to enter the MINSAP headquarters and leave the street.
A few minutes later, a man who introduced himself as “Dr. Fernando” and a Public Health official arrived at the scene, urging them to enter the premises to discuss the matter. Diasniurka and the other mothers refused to enter MINSAP until the detained mothers arrived.
It was reported that some of those intending to attend the meeting couldn’t leave their homes because the police prevented them from doing so.
At the time of this report, it is unclear how the protest continued. In her most recent post, the activist indicated that she couldn’t livestream.
One of the women who stood with her child in front of MINSAP was the mother of Geobel Damir Ortiz Ramírez, a nine-year-old residing in the San Miguel del Padrón municipality, Havana, who needs a humanitarian visa to undergo surgery abroad for a tumor in his eye.
The child has been diagnosed with neurofibromatosis type 1. He has a plexiform neurofibroma in his right eye and secondary glaucoma, also in the right eye. The case is inoperable and lacks any form of treatment because, according to Cuban neurosurgeons, the child’s tumor has spread to the cavernous sinus, an inoperable part of the brain.
In recent months, the increased anguish of these mothers, who already struggle with the usual scarcity, has raised a unified voice to plead for their children.
In October, several Cuban mothers with children suffering from chronic illnesses demanded a guarantee of quality of life and questioned the government for doing nothing to alleviate their situation, while repeating their worn-out discourse of being a medical powerhouse.
Activist Avana de la Torre submitted five medical cases to the Red Cross office on October 10th, cases she had brought to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) office on September 19th.
As she recounted on Facebook, she went to the office accompanied by a doctor and was received by Mrs. Begoña Arellana, the organization’s representative.
“I didn’t want to make it public because what I’m asking for is help, an opportunity for these little ones who have been forgotten by the Cuban communist health system and by UNICEF Cuba,” clarified the activist, highlighting the vulnerability of children in Cuba, especially the delicate situation of sick children lacking access to medications or functional treatments for their conditions.
One of the cases Avana de la Torre highlighted at that time was Anne Jorge’s daughter, who has cerebral palsy and demands proper nutrition and medical resources, including physiotherapy sessions, from the government.
“Where is UNICEF? What is UNICEF doing? What is the Communist Party doing? My girl is only eight years old and despite her numerous conditions, she has a terrible quality of life. Where are you, Communist Party, that you show no interest in cases like Yohaira’s, which have been so ignored by you and forgotten by UNICEF? Where are you, medical powerhouse, that I don’t know what path you’ve taken? Because truly, in Cuba, you are not here, and if you are, you are dressed in lies and deceit,” demanded the mother on Facebook.
Another Cuban mother who joined the protest is Yéssica Peña, whose six-year-old daughter needs an esophagus transplant and other resources to be able to eat.
On that occasion, Yessica Peña urged mothers on the island to demand a freedom they covet but lack the courage to claim, and she encouraged all Cubans to fight for the well-being of their children and families.
See video HERE.