Cuba has issued a strong response to a report carried in the last issue of this newspaper that one of its medical official on the island had sexually assaulted a female patient at the St. George¹s General hospital.

The Cuban response was issued by its female ambassador to St. George¹s, Margarita Delgado Ramirez.

The report in the GRENADA TODAY newspaper quoted a female patient from the parish of St. David¹s as saying that while she was being prepared for surgery the Cuban official had put his mouth into her private parts.

Following is the full text of the Ambassador¹s statement:

The Cuban Embassy in Grenada and the Cuban collaborators in this country totally refute the May 19th Grenada Today Editorial on its page 4.

We are sure it bears an anti-Cuban propaganda and we can show the lies which appear therein. The truth of Cuba and of the Cubans has been related to the economical development of our country, completely recognising all elemental population's rights to health, education and sports, among other social aspects with a wide humanist sense.

The Cuban international relations, especially with developing countries are carried out with selfless solidarity in the difficult moments of these people.

The history of the collaboration between Cuba and Grenada spans almost 25 years of interchange in different fields without taking into account ideological, cultural, educational or existing policies.

In spite of the fact that Cuba is a Caribbean country with few economic resources, Cuba has given scholarships, material help and above all social and educational help as any other developed country has done.

We feel really proud of having helped the Grenadian people in their difficult times, since Independence, Hurricane Ivan to the present. The ethical standard of the health services goes further than a simple doctor-patient relation. Our ethics also involves individual support to the needy countries in this field; for this reason we have more than 50,000 health professionals with well known ethical and professional prestige.

Lack of ethics is improperly informing the people and that should not be an honest journalist job. Informing in an inadequate manner is to make some event seem true even things that are impossible and ethically unacceptable in the Cuban health services. Immoral is to spread and promote this kind of information.

In this editorial and your article the Cuban people's ethics has been offended and you have ignored that Cuba has fought since 1959, and in our struggle we eradicated social evils such as: drugs, prostitution, illiteracy and the political blindness that our colonisers imposed on us.

The Grenadians that have studied and the ones who will study in Cuba have been taught and will be taught to respect ethics and the most essential principles of all societies.

We must remind you that each man selects his way. Obviously you and your newspaper have yours clear and they are not favourable to Cuba and its present reality.

You should know that there is no pornography, brothel; or drugs trade in Cuba. Although Cuba has suffered the U.S.A. and their allies' blockade for more than 40 years, Cuba shows with pride the lowest incidence and prevalence of AIDS in our hemisphere. We also have the highest educational indicators recognized by the United Nations Institute for Education and Children Organisation (UNICEF).

These human development indicators show clearly the educational and health institution reality, as some example of what we are able to do. You should know, that the Cuban collaboration has carried out 12 999 medical appointments, 328,836 nurse's procedures and 1062 surgeries in this country in the last two years.

"|The Miracle Operation", Cuba project for eye surgeries which are free, have carried out more than 150,000 surgeries in Latin America and the Caribbean area. We have seen 6399 cases and 1134 Grenadians have had eye surgeries in our country. There is no other antecedent of similar health collaboration in the world. There has not been any abuse case or a single complaint.

Good journalists that respect their job, their newspaper and their people should not behave the way you have done. Any kind of press must be professional, even yours.

It would be beneficial that you inform yourself better as we can assure you that none of our doctors is involved in the case you are referring to.

Cuba and Grenada base our relations on mutual respect and incidents like these will not damage the historical relationships between both people.