Under the Radar and at Warp Speed Cuba Leads Latin America Towards Affordable Covid-19 Vaccines

Posted by Internationalist 360° on December 15, 2020

Amy Goodman explored “The Case for People’s Vaccines.”

While those interviewed by Ms. Goodman called for early and affordable access to inoculations in the Global South, no mention was made of perhaps the most promising source of such therapies. The neglected source was not only promising but implicitly revealed the swindle represented by Big Pharma’s anticipated exorbitant prices for Covid-19 vaccines.

It may surprise readers to know that the source in question is Cuba.

Cuba’s Achievement

In fact, Cuba is the first nation in Latin America to receive authorization from the World Health Organization (WHO) to perform officially sanctioned tests of the four vaccines it now has under development. Those trials have already completed their clinical stages. Promising results so far have Cubans looking forward to completing the (cost free) inoculation of its entire population of 12 million by the end of March 2021.

The vaccines under trial are named Soberana 01, Soberana 02, Abdala (CIGB66) and Mambisa (CIGB669). None of them is dependent for its preservation on super-cold temperatures.

Mambisa is worthy of special note, since as a nasal spray, it requires no needles, but responds locally to the specifically respiratory nature of Covid-19.

Failure to report such developments even on “Democracy Now” illustrates the complicity of our mainstream media in shunning any news from socialist nations like Cuba that might possibly illustrate the superior ability of their economies to deliver high quality, no-cost healthcare to citizens even during a worldwide pandemic. Moreover, absent the profit motive, Cuba will predictably deliver its vaccines to its neighbors at vastly cheaper prices than its capitalist counterparts.

Cuba’s Vaccine History

This prediction is based on the fact that Cuba has long been a supplier of vaccines and doctors not only to the Global South, but to countries such as Italy during the height of Covid-19’s first wave. Additionally, with its unequaled ratio of doctors to citizens, the island nation’s response to the pandemic has effectively limited documented coronavirus infections despite supply problems caused by the continued U.S. embargo of the island.

All four developments (the superabundance of doctors, the relative control of Covid-19, Cuba’s research capacities, and the export of medical care to other countries) result from the foresight and vision of Fidel Castro, the revered father of his country. In the early 1980s he sparked initiation of a vigorous homegrown biotech sector – largely to cope with the U.S. embargo’s persistent attempts to deprive the island of medical supplies.

The result was the emergence of 20 research centers and 32 companies employing 20,000 people under the umbrella of the state-run BioCubaFarma Corporation. Recently, spokespersons connected with the corporation tweeted, “The #CubanVaccineCOVID19 is dedicated to the sower of dreams: Fidel. Our tribute to the one who believed in the strength and future of #CubanScience.”

BioCubaFarma produces 8 of the 12 vaccines Cuba uses to immunize its own population against diseases such as measles and polio. Cuba has also exported hundreds of millions of vaccine doses to more than 40 countries (e.g. to deal with meningitis and hepatitis B).

All of this represents just one more illustration of socialism’s comparative efficiency in the face of crises like the COVID-19 pandemic. Even a poor blockaded country like Cuba can respond to an unprecedented crisis such as the coronavirus without holding sick people hostage to the confiscatory demands of privatized natural monopolies like Big Pharma. The latter’s claims to mammoth profits based upon (largely government-funded) costly research are simply ideological cover for overweening corporate greed that none of us should stand for.

People’s vaccines can be produced at warp speed and at low cost – despite news blackouts even on “Democracy Now.”

Mike Rivage-Seul: Emeritus professor of Peace & Social Justice Studies. Liberation theologian. Activist. Former R.C. priest.

Explore Port-au-Prince’s Triumphant Art Scene

Haiti’s capital city may still be recovering from the destructive earthquake that struck in 2010, but its art community is thriving

By Jennifer Billock

SMITHSONIANMAG.COM 

 

 In the 1940s, a watercolor painter from the United States, DeWitt Peters, moved to Port-au-Prince, Haiti. When he arrived, he observed the sprawling amounts of local art—adorning everything from walls and sidewalks to the local taxi buses called "tap-taps." The Indigenist movement was in full swing in Haiti; local artists were making both a name for themselves in the country and helping establish the nation's identity as separate from the United States' occupation through the art they created.

At the time, though, Haitian artists hadn’t considered that they could make money from their art. The small nation didn't even have its own art museum yet, so Peters opened Le Centre d'Art, an art gallery and school to encourage and promote local untrained artists, in 1944. Artists already popular in Haiti, including Hector Hyppolite, the Voodoo artist colloquially known as the "grandfather of Haitian art," made their way to the center and took up residence there; the center provided government-funded equipment and materials many artists couldn't afford.

Locally, the work produced at the center became well known, bringing in more students, most of whom were low-income locals. The government paid salaries to all the teachers, among them Peters and other accomplished Haitian artists of the time. And internationally, Haitian art took hold thanks to tourists visiting the small nation, spreading the word and bringing work back home. New York's Museum of Modern Art was the first major museum to acquire a piece of Haitian art.

 

Haiti Pushes Back on US Lawmakers' Call for Transitional Government in 2021

VOA News - Haiti’s ambassador to the United States, Bocchit Edmond, is outraged about a statement issued Tuesday by three Democratic U.S. congressmen calling for a “Haitian-led transition back to democratic order.”

“It is really disturbing,” Edmond told VOA on Wednesday in an exclusive interview. “It saddens us to see democratic officials call for a transitional government. We don’t think that going through a transition again will help Haiti.”

Haiti has had eight provisional governments since the departure of Jean Claude “Baby Doc” Duvalier in 1986.

The joint statement issued by Representatives Andy Levin, a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee; Gregory Meeks, incoming chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee; and Albio Sires, chair of the Western Hemisphere civilian security and trade subcommittee, says they are watching events unfold in Haiti with “growing concern.”

“Haitian President Jovenel Moïse is pursuing an increasingly authoritarian course of action, issuing a series of recent decrees that include creating an extraconstitutional domestic ‘intelligence’ force,” the statement said. “His latest actions are reminiscent of past anti-democratic abuses the Haitian people have endured, including the run-up to the Duvalier dictatorship. We will not stand idly by while Haiti devolves into chaos.”

'Limit the decrees'

Jon Piechowski, U.S. deputy assistant secretary in the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs, echoed that concern in an exclusive interview with VOA Creole earlier this week.

“We are asking the government of Haiti to limit the decrees and only issue them to prepare the legislative elections or address issues pertaining to the well-being, health, security [of the Haitian people] until a new Parliament is installed and can address constitutional matters,” Piechowski said.

Moise has been ruling by decree since January 2020 because Parliament is out of session. The terms of two-thirds of the Chamber of Deputies and Senate expired months before the pandemic hit the Caribbean nation in March.

In their statement, Levin, Meeks and Sires said they would work with the incoming Biden administration and international partners to develop a multilateral strategy to address those concerns and hold accountable Haitian officials who violate the people’s human rights.

The lawmakers said they would develop a U.S. policy that “prioritizes the rights and aspirations of the Haitian people and supports a credible, Haitian-led transition back to democratic order.”

Meeting expected

Edmond told VOA he immediately reached out to the congressmen and intends to meet with them in the new year.

“I am looking forward to talking with them in January,” he said.

Haiti has faced increased pressure from Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, the Organization of American States and the United Nations to hold elections as soon as technically possible.

Pompeo Calls on Haiti to Hold ‘Overdue’ Legislative Elections

A newly created electoral council is charged with organizing elections, but it faces pushback from Haiti’s opposition

But the ambassador said the January 2021 timeframe suggested by the U.S. was not feasible because the Moise government believes an overhaul of the current constitution is necessary first and plans to hold a referendum on that in early 2021.

“I think we have already met them in the middle,” Edmond told VOA. “We have agreed to elections. President Moise has done his job in naming an electoral council. We are working on possible calendars to submit now.”

Pressed on a precise date for elections, Edmond said the Moise administration did not want to give a date it could not realistically uphold. He said an election schedule was in the works and would be made public early next year.

As for the Provisional Electoral Council, Edmond told VOA that members were working with Haiti’s international partners “to make sure the election is fair. We understand this is the path to go.”

But Haiti’s opposition has criticized the Moise government for unilaterally naming members of the council without seeking its input and has vowed not to participate in any elections organized by the administration. The opposition urged Moise to step down February 7, 2021. He responded that his five-year term would end on February 7, 2022.

Concern about human rights

With regard to the human rights concerns expressed by both Republicans and Democrats, Edmond said the Moise government shared those concerns.

“What is going on in those slums [La Saline, Village de Dieux] is gang battles for turf control,” Edmond said. “What happened in La Saline, the government condemned it several times. There is a legal process going on. An investigative judge was appointed on this issue — he is working on it. We need to be very patient and make sure that these victims receive justice, because we understand that these crimes cannot remain unpunished. But the executive [branch] cannot interfere in the judicial process.”

During the La Saline massacre in November 2018, armed gangs killed at least 71 people, raped numerous women and destroyed the homes of hundreds of residents. U.S. lawmakers have repeatedly called on Haiti’s government to bring those responsible to justice.

The ambassador said the Moise administration had also prioritized training for the national police force, which has been under fire for human rights violations.

Reflecting on 2020 and his mission to reinforce bilateral relations, Edmond, who previously served as Haiti’s foreign minister, said that “it has been a pleasure to work with the Trump administration, and we are looking forward to working with the Biden administration.”

But at the end of the day, “Haiti will always handle its foreign policy considering its [own] interests,” he said.