Cuban Statement on US Visa Denial to Cuban Scientists Via NY Transfer News * All the News That Doesn't Fit PERMANENT MISSION OF THE REPUBLIC OF CUBA TO THE UNITED NATIONS 315 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10016 Tel: 212-689-7215 * Fax: 212-689-9073 THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES DENIES OUTSTANDING CUBAN SCIENTISTS VISAS TO PARTICIPATE IN A MEETING ON THE FIGHT AGAINST CANCER DECLARATION OF THE CUBAN MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS MAY 16, 2002 Yesterday afternoon, May 15, officials from the Consulate of the United States' Interests Section in Havana informed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' (MINREX) North American Office that the State Department had denied the visas requested by Adriana Carr Pérez and Tania Crombet Ramos, researchers of the Center for Molecular Immunology and specialists in the development of new cancer treatments (vaccines and antibodies). These two scientists were due to travel to Orlando, Florida to participate in the American Clinical Oncology Society's Annual Meeting that will be held between May 18 and 21 this year. Additionally, Mauricio Catalá Ferrer, a specialized oncologist from CIMEQ, was informed by the Interests Section that his visa was still being processed and would probably not be ready for two or three more days, if it was granted at all. We must point out that in similar Annual Meetings held in the years 2000 and 2001 in New Orleans and San Francisco, respectively, Cuban delegations, including the very same women who have now been denied visas, did participate. These were both occasions for the exchange of experiences in the field of cancer treatment with outstanding specialists from the United States and other countries. Once again, the US State Department and Government have blocked the participation of Cuban scientists in an important event held in the US territory. It must be said that in the last two years alone the United States Government has denied visas to scientists from the Molecular Immunology Center on more than six occasions. The women who have now had their visa applications denied won the right to participate in the event through the quality and importance of their work and the acceptance of their research by the event's Organizing Committee. Their results could be of the utmost importance both for the people of the United States and for many other peoples around the world. The visa applications were made in due time and manner, obeying the 21-day notification demanded by the United States' Interests Section. The women's visas were requested on March 25 whereas Mauricio Catalá's application was handed in on April 12. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs rejects this new US Government aggression against Cuban science and scientists, an aggression that joins a long line of similar acts through which Cuban participation in important meetings in the United States has been denied. The Government of the United States attempts to impede the honest, open and constructive debate between experts of different parts of the world seeking to exchange their experiences, the results of their scientific research and other aspects of their fight against this disease that currently kills more than 500,000 people annually in the United States. The United States authorities try to plead ignorance of the damage that such measures do to the North American scientific community that is robbed of the opportunity to discuss and analyze the work of Cuban scientists, even at the cost of their own citizen's health. As the letter which our scientists have sent to the American Oncology Society's Annual Meeting expresses, it is truly distressing to witness this kind of political interference in medical and scientific research at the dawn of the 21st century. Science and the fight against cancer must not be held hostage by petty political interests. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Cuba Havana, May 16, 2002. * COMMUNIQUÉ SENT MAY 16, 2002 BY COMRADE AGUSTÍN LAGE, DIRECTOR GENERAL OF THE MOLECULAR IMMUNOLOGY CENTER, TO THE ORGANIZERS OF THE AMERICAN CLINICAL ONCOLOGY SOCIETY'S 2002 ANNUAL MEETING: To the organizers of the American Clinical Oncology Society's 2002 Annual Meeting: It is our duty to inform you, and through you to inform the rest of the scientific community of cancer researchers, that two members of our team will be unable to participate in the Clinical Oncology Society's Annual Meeting because the State Department of the Government of the United States of America has denied them visas to travel to that country. Doctor Tania Crombet and Adriana Carr are two researchers who work in the Molecular Immunology Center in Havana, Cuba. They are also the authors of two scientific studies that should have been presented in the meeting containing results on: - Use of a monoclonal antibody against the EGF receptor in combination with radiotherapy in the treatment of advanced cancer of the head and neck. - Immunotherapy of metastatic melanoma with a vaccine based on Gangliosides. It is truly distressing to witness this kind of political interference in medical and scientific research at the dawn of the 21st Century. Let us join our efforts to ensure that such a policy is discontinued. (signed) Dr. Agustín Lage, Director General of the Molecular Immunology Center Official Translation - May 19, 2002 ================================================================= NY Transfer News Collective * A Service of Blythe Systems Since 1985 - Information for the Rest of Us 339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012 http://www.blythe.org e-mail: nyt@blythe.org ================================================================= rhc-eng-10650 2002-May-19 11:04:00