Hunger Strike for Internet Freedom - In Cuba
UPDATE: 2/17 Hunger Strike Continues
UPDATE: 2/15 Still on Hunger Strike
UPDATE: 2/4 More on RWB and lack of Internet access in Cuba here.
I just ran into this great and sad story, about Guillermo Fariñas conducting a hunger strike "to the death" in Cuba. His request? Internet access for the journalists so they can do their work. Internet access, the same one that allows you to read this blog, read the news, read opposing sides. That basic tool for reporters today, denied to the Cuban independent press, because in Cuba only the state sponsored venues have the resources. The whole story is here. The Hunger strike is on its 4th day.
"I want all Cuban citizens to have the right to an Internet connection, but also for the independent press to be able to report on the government's activities, and if I must be a martyr for Internet access, so be it."
Guillermo, so do we.
"The authorities use the US embargo as a pretext for a repressive policy towards the Internet. The chief reason for keeping citizens away from the Internet is to prevent them from being well-informed." Of course, no easier way to keep the population under control than without information - Hitler was a great example of this. His first victims were the teachers and the press. China knows this well too, as we have learned from the recent MSN and Google incursions into the China market.
Tags: Cuba, Freedom, Human Rights, Civil Rights, Journalism, Dissident
UPDATE: 2/15 Still on Hunger Strike
UPDATE: 2/4 More on RWB and lack of Internet access in Cuba here.
I just ran into this great and sad story, about Guillermo Fariñas conducting a hunger strike "to the death" in Cuba. His request? Internet access for the journalists so they can do their work. Internet access, the same one that allows you to read this blog, read the news, read opposing sides. That basic tool for reporters today, denied to the Cuban independent press, because in Cuba only the state sponsored venues have the resources. The whole story is here. The Hunger strike is on its 4th day.
"I want all Cuban citizens to have the right to an Internet connection, but also for the independent press to be able to report on the government's activities, and if I must be a martyr for Internet access, so be it."
Guillermo, so do we.
"The authorities use the US embargo as a pretext for a repressive policy towards the Internet. The chief reason for keeping citizens away from the Internet is to prevent them from being well-informed." Of course, no easier way to keep the population under control than without information - Hitler was a great example of this. His first victims were the teachers and the press. China knows this well too, as we have learned from the recent MSN and Google incursions into the China market.
Tags: Cuba, Freedom, Human Rights, Civil Rights, Journalism, Dissident
Labels: Cuba, Freedom, Guillermo Fariñas
posted by La Ventanita at 2:05 PM
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