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"For more than two years the fiber optic cable between Cuba and Venezuela has been the carrot dangled before the eyes of the inhabitants of this disconnected Island. Its thin threads have served as an argument against those who insist that the web access limitations have more to do with political will than lack of bandwidth. We have paid attention to the sluggish wanderings of the umbilical cord that will connect La Guaira with Santiago de Cuba, the boat that brought it from France, and the news which announced it will increase our data, image and voice transmission speed by three thousand times. But something tells us that this cable already has a name, an owner and an ideology.
With its 640 gigabyte capacity, the new tendon will be particularly devoted to institutional projects monitored by the government."
This blog has ignored posting a rash of recent news stories breathlessly praising the possibilities of a new $70 million cable being laid by Alcatel and heavily financed by Hugo Chavez -- because of a strong hunch that it won't affect ordinary Cuban citizens. It may speed-up the ridiculously SLOW connections at the hotels where tourists pay more than $10 usd per hour. Yet Sanchez seems confident that dissidents like her will get access-- whether the government allows it or not.
FOR DETAILED COVERAGE FROM REUTERS, SEE:http://www.iol.co.za/scitech/technology/telecoms/traffic-jams-unlikely-on-this-data-highway-1.1015495
