Cuban physicians desert in fear of Chávez's electoral defeat

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5. Cable Reveals Corruption & Mistreatment Of Cuban Doctors Working In Venezuela

http://latindispatch.com/2011/07/08/cable-reveals-corruption-mistreatment-of-cuban-doctors-working-in-venezuela/

Cuban doctors working in poor regions of Venezuela face miserable working conditions, inadequate medical supplies and the fear of constantly being monitored by co-workers, according to a leaked U.S. diplomatic cable.

Working in Venezuela as part of a social mission sponsored by Hugo Chávez’s government entitled Barrio Adentro, the Cuban doctors have brought a litany of complaints to the U.S. embassy in Caracas. Some of the doctors had their passports taken from the them upon entering the country for fear that they would flee and others had to pay exorbitant bribes to customs officials in order to leave Venezuela.

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As part of Barrio Adentro and other social welfare programs set up by the Venezuelan government, the doctors were conscripted to work in city slums or impoverished rural communities. Some of the doctor’s said they were forced by Cuban authorities to go to Venezuela for one to three years service.

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The U.S. Embassy in Caracas approved 79 Cuban doctors for asylum in the U.S. in 2009. 39 doctors successfully boarded flights from Caracas to Miami, while others had to wait for their finances to improve or were sent back to Cuba, the cable noted.