By Susana Hurlich on May 1, 2020, from Vedado in Havana
Photo: Ismael Francisco
This is a day in which we must remember and show our solidarity not only with our front line workers – those in the health sector – but with all working people everywhere. Physical distancing in no way detracts from that solidarity. Staying home does not mean being silent. We must use all the means we have – the social media, sms, email, posters, song, internet, gestures, whatever – to express and show our solidarity with all those working to cure and protect us, with all those who have lost their jobs, with all those who are being obliged to return to work in unsafe conditions. We must never lose sight of the critical need of international solidarity, in both words and actions. It is the only thing that will guarantee our collective success in this global struggle against the coronavirus pandemic.
Having witnessed, and lived very intimately with, Cuba’s approach to coronavirus since its first case was diagnosed on March 11th, there are several key features that constantly stand out.
First and foremost, and as I’ve said before, is Cuba’s unwavering commitment to saving lives, to keeping its population as healthy and protected as possible. It does not matter what your social status is, or your educational level, or what kinds of skills you have or even if you have none to speak of, or the color of your skin, or your religion, or your sexual orientation, or your age, or other health complications that may beset you, or how much money you have in the bank or whether you have a bank account at all, or your nationality, or even whether or not you’re 100% committed to the country’s political orientation.
None of this is important. The only requirement is that you be alive. That’s it. That’s how simple it is: that you be a living and breathing human being. This fact alone qualifies you to the best possible health care that Cuba is able to provide: the best doctors, the top specialists if required, a ventilator if necessary… If Cuba has it and you need it, you get it. You don’t even have to ask.
This single prerequisite – being alive – is what enables Cuba to have a truly preventive and responsive health care system. If such a system is not readily accessible to each and every person with NO prior condition other than being alive and in need of health care, this would not be a system that is either preventive or responsive. It would instead be a system where some would be included while others would be excluded; many people would fall through the net and be lost. They would die.
And it’s all free. Free for the people; the state budget covers the costs.
So, the key ideas of the first point: saving and protecting lives, inclusivity, accessibility.
The second feature is equally important – respect for the people. Here in Cuba, like many countries elsewhere, we are getting news about coronavirus within the country and in the world on an almost non-stop basis. On the TV, on all radio stations, and in all the national and provincial newspapers. Of course one doesn’t have to watch, listen to or read it all. But it’s clear that the operating assumption of the multiple structures and institutions working on coronavirus in Cuba is that the Cuban people are by and large literate, intelligent and capable of understanding. The educational system here has made them so, and it’s a country with a virtually 100% literacy rate.
In all the media, guidelines are being provided constantly about what people can do to prevent infection and the spread of coronavirus as well as about what we should do if suspicious symptoms appear.
Does this mean everyone is behaving intelligently? Of course not… there are still people who do not want to accept the seriousness of the situation, who gather at street corners to chat or play dominos – though neighbors try to remind them of what’s going on and the police will occasionally give out fines.
Does this mean everyone is using a face mask and keeping physical distance when outside their home? Of course not, though there’s lots of unevenness from one area to another. For instance, here in Vedado where I live, it’s extremely rare to see someone on the street without a face mask. And though lines are long at the stores, in some cases – and without any visible police presence – people are keeping good physical distancing and waiting their turn patiently. In other areas, people appear without face masks and just seem to be ambling about.
But the approach of the media and official structures is to keep people informed and to appeal to their comprehension and voluntary and responsible participation. When a particular area is put under limited access or quarantine, the reasons are carefully and clearly explained including what measures are being taken to ensure that such areas have access to food, water, garbage collection, intensified local health care, etc.
In short, there is absolutely nothing draconian about the measures being taken in Cuba to simultaneously contain the spread of coronavirus and take care of people who have either contacted the disease or are in categories that are more vulnerable to infection (e.g., pre-existing respiratory and/or other health conditions; elder’s homes; etc.).
But underlying all this is a clear assumption that an informed population will be more likely to behave in a disciplined and responsible way and, through doing so, will become activeparticipants in the country’s efforts to overcome the destructive impact of coronavirus and its associated disease, COVID-19.
Two other features also merit mention. On the one hand is Cuba’s commitment to investigate any and all possible new treatments and approaches to this pandemic being done anywhere in the world. As is well known, Cuba has a highly competent medical and scientific capability for
doing this, and if something is found that can be of benefit to improving Cuba’s capacity, it’s immediately incorporated in the national treatment and prevention plan.
On the other hand is Cuba’s well-known international solidarity in helping other peoples and nations in their fight against coronavirus. To date, just over 2,000 Cuban health professionals are assisting 22 nations – and this is just with the struggle against COVID-19. These figures do not include the many thousands of additional Cuban medical staff who are working in other countries, 65 in total.
But in the battle against coronavirus alone, as of the end of April some 51 countries have requested the assistance of Cuban medical personnel. In at least nine of these countries, because of the large number of Cuban health workers who are already there, it was decided to train them rather than send additional doctors. Such training is being done by video-conferences in which Cuba’s home-based leading health specialists have educational exchanges with Cuban health workers overseas on the application of treatment protocols, including self-protection, for dealing with this pandemic. (Significantly, by the end of April, over 80 countries around the world have also expressed interest in obtaining Cuba’s Interferon Alpha-2B, an already proven medication in helping to treat the disease.)
Countries to which Cuba has sent medical teams to help combat coronavirus cover the costs of transport, lodging and meals, while developed countries also provide an additional compensation that helps support Cuba’s domestic health services.
Cuba’s long-standing commitment to international solidarity, to helping countries and peoples in need who request such assistance, does not emanate simply from the political principles of the country. Rather, these principles emanate from both a long-standing core value of the Cuban Revolutionary process since its inception, as well as from perhaps an even longer-standing characteristic of the essence of being Cuban: compassion and opening oneself in loving ways to the other.
In many interesting ways, well beyond the scope of what I’m writing now, the Cuban Revolution simultaneously benefitted from this essence and, in turn, reinforced it. For all their bravura and occasional boastfulness, the Cuban people are one of the most compassionate and generous people I have ever known. Rather than fearing “the other” – whether defined by color or religion or nationality or whatever – as a potential enemy to be destroyed, the Cuban people have always embraced “the other” as an intimate part of their own humanity. Cubans are ready to share what little they have anywhere in the world, and are rightfully proud of their achievements in both health care and education – two (of several) areas in which many peoples around the world have benefitted from Cuban knowledge, expertise and generosity. It’s this compassion and love that is the primary driving force behind Cuba’s willingness to share its health workers and skills with other peoples and nations in their battle against coronavirus.
As I said at the start, stay home but don’t stay silent. When you go out, use your face mask and keep physical distance. There are so many alternatives to hugs, handshakes, high fives and hongi (the Maori greeting of rubbing noses together). There’s the wave, the hand on the heart, the Namaste (the Hindu greeting made by pressing the palms together at chest height), the “all good” nod, the thumbs up gesture, blowing a kiss, etc.
With cats and dogs it’s easier: a kind voice, a gentle pat on the head, a choice morsel. And with trees, well, the sky’s the limit! Embrace them! Touch their bark. Smell their leaves and flowers. Feel their immense and interconnected network of roots beneath your feet. And let yourself know a moment of peace, rejuvenation and rebirth.
Love, Susana
Havana, Cuba
Susana Hurlich is a writer and has been living and working for over 30 years in Cuba
Source: Resumen Latinoamericano