Cuban Government Launches Ideological Offensive On Human Rights Day

Cuban Government Launches Ideological Offensive On Human Rights Day /
14ymedio, Zunilda Mata

14ymedio, Zunilda Mata, Havana, 10 December 2016 — For several years on
International Human Rights Day, the Cuban government has
strengthed its ideological battle on the internet with police operations
around the country. The volume of epithets posted on social networks and
the official slogans published in on-line forums offer a strong contrast
to the poor access to the World Wide Web experienced by people on the
island.

Cuba has one of the lowest internet penetration rates of the Western
hemisphere, with fewer than 5% of the population connected, but this
Saturday its presence on the web will surpass that of other more
connected nations. The authorities have prepared an avalanche of
messages of support to spread what they call "the human rights enjoyed
by Cuban youth."

For the virtual offensive they have called on university students,
members of the Young Communist Union, and teenagers in high school. The
political battle on the network will be accompanied by activities and
celebrations in dozens of parks and plazas throughout the country.

"I have to go, but variety is the spice of life; because I publish on
Twitter they asked me to take advantage of it and connect with some
friends on Facebook," a student majoring in History at the University of
Havana, who is participating in the digital offensive, told this newspaper.

The official press has called the day a "hornet's nest" that is held
under the slogan "My Cuba with rights." The activities not only address
the National Day for Human Rights, but also plan a tribute to "the chief
defender of the humble, Comandante en Jefe Fidel Castro Ruz," according
to the announcement.

The activities planned for Saturday also include sports competitions,
cultural shows, book sales and presentations of audiovisual
materials. The sites chosen for the celebrations coincide in many cases
with points where the opposition traditionally demonstrates during the
Human Rights Day.

University Law Professor Luis Sola Vila spoke on the Legal segment of
the morning news magazine, saying that "in our country the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights went into effect with the triumph of the
Revolution, undeniably."

Sola Vila noted that Cuba is a signatory to several treaties, including
those against torture, discrimination against women and racial
discrimination, but omitted that the government of the island has not
yet ratified the United Nations International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights and its International Covenant on Economic, Social and
Cultural Rights.

Amid the intense ideological campaign on display in the official media
for the occasion, conspicuously absent has been any reference to the
rights of association or freedom of expression.

From the early morning hours several activists denounced police
operations around their homes and warnings from State Security not to go
out into the street. At dawn the headquarters of the Ladies in White in
the Havana neighborhood of Lawton was surrounded by political police,
according to a report from the dissident Angel Moya.

Officialdom expects to mark another ideological victory on this Human
Rights Day, keeping the opposition forces under control, deploying an
army of followers on the internet, and staging prepared celebrations in
Cuban parks.

Source: Cuban Government Launches Ideological Offensive On Human Rights
Day / 14ymedio, Zunilda Mata – Translating Cuba -
http://translatingcuba.com/cuban-government-launches-ideological-offensive-on-human-rights-day-14ymedio-zunilda-mata/