HAVANA — A top Cuban official said Friday that Raul Castro’s government would consider loosening Internet restrictions on ordinary citizens newly allowed to purchase computers _ but Washington’s decades-old economic embargo makes it impossible. ‘We aren’t worried about the citizenry connecting from their homes,’ Telecommunications Vice Minister Boris Moreno told a small group of reporters. ‘But problems with technology and resources have made it necessary to give priority to connections that guarantee the country’s social and economic development,’ he said, referring to an islandwide network that lets Cubans receive e-mail and view domestic Web sites. The rest of the worldwide Web is blocked to most citizens in Cuba, which has access controls far stricter than in China or Saudi Arabia. Only foreigners and some government employees and academics are currently allowed unfiltered home Internet service, and many Cubans turn to the black market for expensive, slow dial-up accounts. Computers for home use were also not available until two weeks ago, when state stores began selling them to the public as part of a series of small quality-of-life changes since Raul Castro replaced his elder brother Fidel in February. But Moreno said the government is unable […]
Monday, May 19th, 2008
Official: Cuba Supports Unrestricted Internet, But US Embargo Makes It Impossible
Author:
Source: The Age (Australia)
Publication Date: May 17, 2008 - 6:37AM
Link: Official: Cuba Supports Unrestricted Internet, But US Embargo Makes It Impossible
Source: The Age (Australia)
Publication Date: May 17, 2008 - 6:37AM
Link: Official: Cuba Supports Unrestricted Internet, But US Embargo Makes It Impossible
Stephan: Even a child knows that greater access to the internet, changes a person's perspective about the world in which they live. One would think that the U.S. would be encouraging Cuban citizens to get online -- but, no. Our policies toward Cuba are so insane, they constitute a kind of national psychosis.