14ymedio, Havana, December 27, 2019 — Yaima Caballero’s life took an unexpected turn in a little more than two months. At the beginning of October she took her one-year-old daughter, Paloma, to a medical center in Havana for the MMR vaccine against measles, mumps and rubella. A few days later, the little girl died from complications that, for now, are attributed to an incorrect dosage.
Since then, the young woman has undertaken a personal battle to have what happened thoroughly investigated so it won’t happen again. Although Caballero never complained about the medical attention her daughter received — on the contrary, she thanked the doctors — reprisals weren’t long in coming for having raised her voice.
State Security was present at a meeting with the health authorities, and they warned her that she could go to prison if she persisted in making “false accusations.” The situation sent her and her husband into exile in México, where they had planned a trip.
See also: 14ymedio’s 14 Faces of 2019
Translated by Regina Anavy
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