Hundreds of Cubans participated this Saturday in a “tweet protest” to make visible the dissatisfaction with Internet prices on the island offered by the only telecommunications company in the country, ETECSA.
The Inventory Project compiled the data generated by the users (at least 1,200) who participated in one way or another in the public conversation on this social network with the #bajenlospreciosdeinternet hashtag, which generated more than 9,000 tweets.
#actualización (última) que completa las 24 horas de la etiqueta #BajenLosPreciosDeInternet hasta las 11:59. Contamos unos 9 mil tuits de más de 1250 usuarios únicos
Versión interactiva 📈 https://t.co/pexDmolbkO pic.twitter.com/JIuUeTCL10— Inventario (@invntario) June 2, 2019
Several users responded to accusations of “mercenaries” that several of their compatriots wielded in response to the campaign, and invited them to respond from where they were writing their tweets and with what type of internet.
Así fuimos cuantitativamente. Cuali: somos “mercenarios”. Qué barbaridad!!! Digo yo que, si lo fuéramos, no importarían precios altísimos y mal servicio. Y reitero mi petición: aporten pruebas, porque incurren en delito tipificado en Código Penal cubano. Más la ética, la etica… https://t.co/OtfNGTnhwb
— Marta María Ramírez (@Martamar77) June 2, 2019
Cuban officials and another group of people such as intellectuals, artists, and some journalists, etc. can have free access to the internet from their home based on quotas established by the State.
Más de 79 mil hogares en #Cuba cuentan con acceso a #Internet a través del servicio #NautaHogar #CubaAvanza #CubaInformatiza @Cubacel_ETECSA @MINCONCuba
— Acelia Maria González Lorenzo (@cubaceliam) June 1, 2019
Minister of Communications Jorge Luis Perdomo said on Twitter that “more than half of Cubans who access the Internet do so free of charge (from) their study and work centers.”
Más de la mitad de los cubanos que acceden Internet lo hacen gratuitamente de sus centros de estudio y de trabajo. Se ha ampliado el ancho de banda de instituciones sociales y educacionales. Los servicios serán cada vez más asequibles a medida que contemos con más infraestructura https://t.co/9FzQewwYYq
— Jorge Luis Perdomo (@JorgeLuisPerd20) June 2, 2019
Cuba is a signatory to the Connect 2020 Agenda approved in 2014 by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), which states that “in developing countries, 50 percent of the individuals should use the Internet” or “have access” to the Internet in their homes.
In addition, as agreed five years ago, “broadband services should not cost more than 5 percent of the average monthly income” of the citizens of each country.
Al cierre de abril en #Cuba existen más de 5.4 millones de líneas #celulares, de ellas más de 2.3 millones pueden acceder a #Internet #CubaAvanza #CubaInformatiza @Cubacel_ETECSA @MINCONCuba pic.twitter.com/1xsa6V8RgX
— ETECSA (@ETECSA_Cuba) June 1, 2019
With less than half a year left before 2020, the current price for the population is 10 centavos in CUC per one megabyte of Internet consumed, in addition to other offers such as the “packages,” where the most expensive (30 CUC for 4 Gb ) represents the full monthly salary of a professional.
Según @ETECSA_Cuba
-la pensión de un anciano son 600MB de Internet
-el sueldo mínimo en Cuba es 1 GB
-el sueldo de un técnico especializado o de un universitario recién graduado es 2.5GB
-el sueldo de un profesor titular de la CUJAE o de la UH son 4GB#BajenLosPreciosDeInternet— Bely Rodriguez Morales (@BelyRodriguez89) June 1, 2019
According to some of its participants, the protest started from chat groups on Telegram, a social network that allows up to 20,000 people to connect by messaging.
In recent months, Cubans have spontaneously organized themselves on social networks such as WhatsApp to organize groups to locate food and other products, convene marches such as that of animal protection or LGBTIQ rights, as well as offer immediate help in the face of natural disasters, as happened last January with the tornado that devastated part of Havana.
Termina el tuitazo #BajenLosPreciosDeInternet y puede decirse que fue productivo. Comparados con otros países y movimientos son números discretos pero para #Cuba es un buen comienzo. Queda mantener viva la etiqueta hasta que se cumpla. El gasto de datos móviles valió la pena. https://t.co/pJhbHyJMbY
— Glenda C. Boza Ibarra (@glendaboza) June 2, 2019
