Prime Minister John Briceno and Foreign Minister Francis Fonseca joined other CARICOM leaders via Zoom today to have a meeting in advance of United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio's Caribbean visit next week. Rubio is set to make stops in Jamaica, and then move unto the oil rich CARICOM nations of Guyana and Suriname. CARICOM Chairwoman Mia Mottley plans to be in Kingston for Rubio's visit as does Trinidad and Tobago's new prime minister, Stuart Young.
Sure to come up in the meeting is Washington's recent announcement that it plans to cancel the visas of public officials and their families across the hemisphere who are involved in obtaining services from Cuban doctors and their medical brigades, which the US calls forced labour.
This could affect all CARICOM nations - and Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves of St Vincent and the Grenadines recently said they can take his visa now, because he is standing by the Cuban doctors.
But, what about Belizean officials? We asked the Minister of Health today and he was a little more circumspect. For context, first we have audio of the remarks from Gonsalves:
Voice of: Ralph Gonsalves, Prime Minister of St, Vincent and the Grenadines
"If it is determined that you have to take away my Visa and Eloise, I want to say this publicly, I am not looking for fight with anybody, but we have to be honest and open, the haemodialysis which we do in St. Vincent at the modern medical and diagnostic center with these 60 persons without the Cubans there I will not be able to offer that service. So, does anybody expect that I to go because I want to keep a Visa, that I would let 60 persons from the poor and working people to die. It will never happen."
Jules Vasquez
"He's willing to give up his visa because he cannot keep his people healthy without that. What would you say in the face of the threat from the US, that if you don't stop this "forced labor" of the Cuban Medical Brigade, as they call it, you know, we will start to cancel the visas of health officials and their families. Your response?"
Kevin Bernard, Minister of Health and Wellness
"Let me, let me let me say I am very much disturbed by what is happening, across, and the decisions, the notion that that, but at the end of the day, Jules, I will say this, that, the Cuban people have assisted Belize for many, many, many decades. In fact, they are here in this country providing a service towards a very rural population. And we don't own the rights to whether or not the US issues or grants or denies a person's visa. That's the, that's the right of the United States government. I, I don't want to get into that diplomatic issue. But all I can say is that I know that Belize continues to enjoy the relationship we had with Cuba."
"We also have a good relationship with the United States of America. And I'm no, I'm very sure that through our Foreign Affairs ministry, they are working out and having the discussions, with the US government in terms of clearing up some of the, the, making clarification as to some of the concerns that the US government had as it relates to, the area of what they're claiming, human trafficking in terms of Cuba and the Cuban nationals."
Jules Vasquez
"But are you concerned for your own visa or that of your family?"
Kevin Bernard, Minister of Health and Wellness
"Jules, I am a Belizean and a Belizean first. I live in Belize. That's where my love is. And so, my focus is to ensure that our Belizean people can continue to, to continue to benefit from the work that we are doing as a government. Whether or not I travel the US is far, it's it's far from the the most important issue in my life. For now, as a minister of government, I'm here to work for my people to ensure that we can deliver for the Belizean people. And so, while that is a matter that has surfaced, so, as I said, it's not in me to respond to that, I believe that through the Foreign Affairs Ministry, they are working out those issues. They are making those clarifications to the U.S government."
Jules Vasquez
"Do you consider it forced labour?"
Kevin Bernard, Minister of Health and Wellness
"These people come to Belize and they get paid a salary to them. We don't pay the government of Cuba. Remember, that is that is one of the big issue, I think. But these Cuban doctors get paid a salary in Belize to their own personal accounts that they have in Belize. And so I don't I don't see where that is forced labor. But people coming to provide a service and being remunerated in Belize for that service."
Prime Minister Mia Mottley of Barbados has also said she is willing to have her US visa revoked rather than back down on the issue.
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