IDENTIDADES 1 ENGLISH IDENTIDADES 2 ENGLISH | Page 18

The Cuban government’s war was lost before it
began. All power elites try to use technology according to their own interests, but the Cuban authorities prefer to fight it, which is becoming
more and more difficult and traumatic. Why?
Technology is constantly being perfected and developed, and because human creativity also constantly sharpens its ability to be able to face repression and challenges to freedom—thankfully.
Ever since September 8, 1987, the Joven Club de
Computación y Electrónic [Computing and Electronics Youth Clubs] (JCCE) has served as a network of technology centers whose primary objective is to contribute to the socialization and computerization of Cuban society. This supposed, primary objective has not been met. Instead, these
clubs have served only to reinforce, camouflaged,
government control, and hack any and all information that flows through them. They reflect (reveal) any activities that take place therein.
The Universidad de Ciencias Informáticas [University of Information Sciences] (UCI), created
by the government as a reflection of its image to
“train” computer science specialists, is another
excellent example. Located at the old, Soviet, radio-electronic base at Lourdes, it was filled with
privileges and carefully chosen youth seleced for
their talent and political loyalty. These privileged
youth devoted themselves to illegally connecting
to the Internet.
The official lie
Contradictory to what Triana Cordoví—who
should be up on official policies—seemed to be
proposing, the high leadership thought of a way
to somehow connect Cubans to technology without losing total control. It created instructional
centers with access to computing, and included
computer science as a subject from primary
school up. Yet, none of this satisfied the expectations of a society that is intent upon advancing

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economically and culturally, much less did it address its basic needs.
What can one say about the government’s control
of all technology, when only one company controls mobile telephony, Internet access, fixed telephony and a number of other services? This
company should reconsider its service options
and fees. As of last year, Nauta salons with Internet and email connections were created. Anyone
can use them, but it is not free, and just the prices
alone restrict access for most of the people who
would like to use them. We are talking about a
country where an hour of Internet use costs 4.50
convertible pesos (CUCs), which is equal to
112.50 CUPs—or nearly half of an average
monthly salary.
The Cuban government should respect the Internet’s neutrality and allow for more freedom, but
it would then have to unblock all the web sites to
which they restrict access from Cuba. Once and
for all, it would have to acknowledge that it is violating the freedom of opinion and expression,
free flow of information, and the inalienable right
of all Cubans to inform themselves “by any
means possible.” Similarly, it is absolutely essential for the price of Nauta salon Internet cards to
come down, to make it easier for the population
to have access to the web. If it really wants to contribute to the informational freedom and development it is promoting, the government needs to offer Wi-Fi service in the Nautas. Furthermore—
and I know I’m dreaming—it could also provide
access in public places, shopping centers, libraries, hospitals, etc.
The government uses Cuba’s lack of infrastructure as one of several, absurd justifications for the
lack of access. Why hasn’t the government taken
the supposedly necessary steps to change this?
The real reason is its fear of losing the totalitarian
control upon which it depends to maintain its
power. The regime knows all too well that if the