On November 26, the Norwegian Nobel Committee confirmed that it had accepted the candidature of the Henry Reeve Medical Brigade sponsored by Professor Gilles Bibeau from Quebec. 

In a year in which global attention is being focused on the challenges of fighting a pandemic, a Cuban organization – the Henry Reeve Medical Brigade – has distinguished itself by providing selfless assistance to some 40 countries and territories.

This manifestation of international solidarity has found its echo in a movement to promote the candidature of the Henry Reeve Medical Brigade, made up of doctors and other healthcare workers from Cuba, for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2021. Nearly 200 committees have been formed for this purpose throughout the world. The Norwegian Nobel Committee will begin its deliberations on February 1, 2021. The announcement will be made in the fall of 2021.

On the initiative of the Table de concertation de solidarité Québec-Cuba (TCSQ-C),[1] a Québec committee has been formed. It is called the Comité québécois pour la nomination de la Brigade Henry Reeve au prix Nobel de la paix(Québec Committee for the Nomination of the Henry Reeve Brigade for the Nobel Peace Prize). Its first task, as announced last October 5, was to find a personality who would meet the criteria set by the Norwegian Nobel Committee for the submission of nominations. The committee found Mr. Gilles Bibeau to be the ideal sponsor to nominate the Henry Reeve Brigade.

Professor Emeritus at the University of Montreal, author of more than 300 publications, Gilles Bibeau is an expert in medical anthropology. A man who has spent much time in the field, his work on the social determinants of health in Africa, Latin America and Asia enables him to appreciate the exceptional humanitarian contribution of Cuba’s Henry Reeve Brigade.

On November 26, the Norwegian Nobel Committee confirmed that it had accepted the candidature of the Henry Reeve Medical Brigade sponsored by Professor Gilles Bibeau.

The attached letter was written by Professor Bibeau to justify the candidature of the Henry Reeve Brigade. The argumentation is accompanied by statistics that powerfully describes the quality of the interventions and what makes them unique. It ties in well with the contributions of the Brigade to the promotion of social justice, which is the basis of peace within and between nations. The Brigade builds bridges between peoples and nations across systems, ideologies and geopolitical tensions.

Since its creation in 2005, Cuba’s Henry Reeve Medical Brigade has responded to requests from various governments to assist their populations during health emergencies resulting from natural disasters or epidemics. In the last 15 years, more than 9,000 Cuban healthcare professionals have worked in the Henry Reeve Brigade and carried out some 60 missions on four continents. It is estimated that they have provided care to over four million people and saved nearly 100,000 lives.

As the planet grapples with a terrible pandemic, there is no better time to highlight the selfless work of Cuban professionals who, between March and November 2020, battled COVID-19 in some 40 countries and territories. Their altruism and solidarity should earn them the Nobel Peace Prize in 2021. Comité québécois pour la nomination de la Brigade Henry Reeve au prix Nobel de la paix of the Table de concertation de solidarité Québec-Cuba.

Photo : Comité québécois pour la nomination de la Brigade Henry Reeve au prix Nobel de la paix of the Table de concertation de solidarité Québec-Cuba – from top left, clockwise : Sean O’Donoghue, Colette Lavergne, Guy Roy, Arnold August, Vincent Dostaler, Marie;Célie Agnant, Claude Morin.

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[1] The TCSQ-C was founded in January 2002 and regroups several organizations from around Québec. Its principle activities turn around solidarity with the people of Cuba through the dissemination of factual information, material aid, as well as the organization of cultural exchanges, which testify to the friendship that binds the people of Québec and Cuba.

The TCSQ-C will ask personalities from academia, politics and the arts, as well as the healthcare field to express their support for the Québec campaign by endorsing the candidature of Cuba’s Henry Reeve Medical Brigade for the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize. A list of these personalities (as well as organizations) will appear in another press release to be sent to the media and partner organizations in order to raise awareness among the Québec public of the exceptional contribution of the Henry Reeve Brigade. Professor Bibeau’s letter will accompany the press release as it constitutes an essential part of our campaign.

Featured image is fromPAHO/WHO