European Parliament Adopts Amendment Labeling Cuban Medical Brigades as “Modern Slavery”

The amendment, incorporated into a resolution motion, introduces an explicit reference to the situation of Cuban healthcare workers sent abroad.

MIAMI, United States – The European Parliament approved in early April an amendment that labels Cuba’s medical brigades as a form of “modern slavery,” according to Spanish MEP Antonio López-Istúriz White, who announced the move on his X (formerly Twitter) account and promoted the proposal.

“And today [April 2, 2025], after months of work, the European Parliament plenary has approved our amendment to denounce that the so-called Cuban medical brigades are MODERN SLAVERY. We will continue fighting for democracy, human rights, and freedom,” López-Istúriz wrote.

Amendment 311, added to section 3, item 10 of a resolution motion, explicitly refers to the situation of Cuban healthcare workers sent abroad. The original text already condemned the “systematic human rights violations and abuses perpetrated by the Cuban regime.” The amended version emphasizes that “the ‘Cuban medical brigades’ employed in some European countries constitute a violation of fundamental rights and freedoms, and a form of slavery and forced labor.”

https://twitter.com/TonoEPP/status/1907509443320860737

This mention is part of a broader resolution focused on the situation in Nicaragua, which also condemns the ties between Daniel Ortega’s regime and other authoritarian governments, including those of Iran, Venezuela, and Cuba.

Previous Denouncement in the Foreign Affairs Committee

On January 30, 2025, López-Istúriz White had already introduced the initiative via X: “For the first time, we are introducing in the European Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee, in the annual report that shapes and conditions EU foreign policy, this denouncement of the well-known ‘Cuban medical brigades.’”

In that same message, the MEP asserted that the conditions imposed on Cuban healthcare workers violate several international legal instruments, including Article 5 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, which prohibits forced or compulsory labor; and Article 4 of the European Convention on Human Rights. They also violate International Labour Organization (ILO) Conventions, to which Cuba is a signatory.

López-Istúriz also referred to a complaint filed with the International Criminal Court by the organization Prisoners Defenders, which includes testimony from more than 1,200 Cuban doctors. According to the MEP, these professionals “have chosen to tell their own experiences” regarding the operation of the medical brigades exported by the Cuban regime.

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