Cubans living in Belgium created a the project  Maleta Solidaria

Brussels, Oct 3 (RHC) Cubans living in Belgium created a peculiar project, Maleta Solidaria (the Solidarity Suitcase), to support their country in the difficult times it is going through, they systematically send luggage with donations, explained Lissett Herrera, one of the promoters.

The principle of the initiative is very simple, every time someone travels to the island they send medicines, necessities, and other products to help their compatriots in the challenges of everyday life.

According to Herrera, donations are obtained through various channels, from the contribution of Cuban residents and Belgians, with the projection of making at least one monthly shipment, the third of them scheduled for tomorrow, to materialize modest support for the work of Miguel Enriquez Hospital in Havana.

The idea came up in my house in a conversation among friends and we proposed the then utopian vision of looking for an expeditious way to send the aid, and nothing faster than using commercial flights, Herrera explained.

The first shipment was made after the fire that hit the Supertankers Base in the Matanzas province in early August, and a few weeks later, the second shipment was made, each one consisting of 25 kilograms, mainly medicines, which were distributed to hospitals in the Antillean nation.

The Solidarity Suitcase is already a reality, which involves Cubans living in various cities and Belgian associations with a tradition of helping the island, so its promoters drew up a tentative schedule in terms of beneficiaries.

In that sense, Herrera pointed out that in November they plan to send a piece of luggage to a mother and child hospital in the capital, while in December the idea is to deliver toys to children in Havana's oncology hospital.

We know that these donations do not solve the problems of our homeland, but we see it as a symbol and a possibility to help our compatriots, that is why we are all very happy and every suitcase we send fills us with satisfaction", she stressed with emotion.

The inhabitants of the Caribbean country are facing a particularly difficult summer month, with the energy crisis, the fire in Matanzas, and the recent passage through the western region of the devastating hurricane Ian, combined with the accumulated impact of more than six decades of the U.S. blockade, which intensified amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

For Herrera, there is no small help in this context, and the project to which many put heart and soul represents a quick and concrete contribution, and a stimulus for others in Europe and the world willing to act, without forgetting that it ratifies to Cubans on the island that they are not alone.

That is why we want to thank all those who have joined, aware that here the only protagonists are the suitcase and the people we help, he said. (Source: PL)