Cuban government cautiously expands Internet access

Source: France 24

July 29, 2019 at 10:36

Yamil Lage, AFP | Young Cubans connect to the internet from their mobile phone in Havana, on June 6, 2019.

All Cubans can now have Wi-Fi in their homes, as the island’s government extends internet access even while trying to maintain control over its version of the “truth” and to defend its legitimacy, a top official tells AFP.

“Cubans support and defend the revolution in every domain, both in the real and the virtual worlds,” Ernesto Rodriguez Hernandez, vice minister of communications, said in an interview.

In his eyes, the internet and social media are tools to “position the truth of Cuba, not to manipulate things,” giving them a key role in the political and ideological battles being fought at a time of sharp diplomatic tensions with the United States.

The telecommunications sector in Cuba once one of the world’s least connected countries has doubtless changed more than any other in the past year.

Since December, when mobile phones gained 3G connectivity, an active online community has sprung up on social networks, often questioning the government about the challenges of daily life on the island.

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