Cuban doctors inspire

KATOOMBA — Braving sleet and snow, 35 people attended — and were inspired by — a screening of writer and activist Dr Tim Anderson's new documentary, The Doctors of Tomorrow, in the Blue Mountains on July 28.

The 40-minute film tells the stories of some of the 850 young East Timorese studying to become doctors in Cuba at the largest medical college in the world. They have received scholarships as part of a Cuban solidarity program that is largely ignored by the mainstream media.

The film generated a wide-ranging discussion with Anderson about Cuba's commitment to education for self-determination and preventative health care, and the powerful example it sets for international solidarity. Many in the audience left the event determined to get the word out more widely about this remarkable program. To see interviews with students studying medicine in Cuba, visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFXgyWzL2yQ.

From GLW issue 761