Joe Biden wants to give more internet to Cuba: he assesses violation of restrictions

The President of the United States, Joe Biden, assured that his administration was studying ways to restore internet access in Cuba, a country he called a “failed state”.

President Joe Biden’s suggestion that the United States give Cuba full internet access could break new ground in digital rights, but faces significant technical and geopolitical obstacles.

The president’s statement followed statements by Republican Senator Marco Rubio and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis that Washington would need to set up satellites, balloons and offshore hotspots to provide unfiltered connectivity to Cuba.

“They cut off access to the Internet. We are looking at whether we have the technological capacity to restore this accessBiden told reporters Thursday.

Human rights activists hailed the idea of ​​giving Cubans unrestricted internet after the government of the island will cut applications and connection services while facing strong internal protests.

“I don’t know how fast or how easy it would be“However,” said Milton Mueller, professor at Georgia University of Technology and director of the Internet Governance Project.

“If the Cuban government cuts off access, there is no way to connect easily from a balloon or a drone.”

Cuba has limited access to fixed and mobile internet and used other methods to filter online content with Chinese-made technology, said Gaspar Pisanu of digital rights group Access Now.

“They remove people’s ability to use mobile data by revoking their SIM cards, censor hashtags, block messages on VPN“, He said.

To circumvent limitations on the Internet, activists resort to a variety of resources, including virtual private networks (VPNs), “mesh networks” that link clusters of computers and techniques to conceal their activities, but none have been used on a large scale.

Internet services via satellite, drones and balloons are at an early stage and are often accessible through official operators.

Cuba’s possible response

But Havana is likely to view any effort to deal with an unfiltered internet as a violation of its sovereignty, notes human rights group Freedom House.

“Cuban legal structure is not favorable to internet freedom, and the country lacks an independent judicial system that can thwart government efforts to suppress independent online activities, ”the association said in its 2020 report.

“Internet is a fundamental human right in the digital age“said Darrell West, senior researcher at the Center for Technology Innovation at the Brookings Institution.

Sebastián Arcos, associate director of the Cuban Research Institute at Florida International University, welcomed the proposals of Biden and others, and argued that “the Cuban regime is abusing the concept of sovereignty.” repress its population.

But he noted that such a move “could be problematic given the history of the United States and Cuba.”

An alternative internet package “This would strengthen the resistance of the Cuban government and give it an excuse to assert that this is an imperialist action by the United States, ”added Mueller.

Pisanu said his organization had called on Cuba to fully restore connectivity, without promoting an alternative internet.

In addition to this, you will need to know more about it.Source: AFP (Rob Lever)