Cuba’s government is being accused of censoring text messages in an attempt to suppress opposition to its new proposed constitution.
Hearing that text messages with hashtags opposing the new constitution were being blocked, Eduardo Sanchez, 23, decided to test it out for himself, WPLG Local 10 reports. Sanchez posted a screenshot on Twitter showing several text messages he claims he sent and a screenshot of ones he claims were actually delivered.
Text messages containing pro-constitution hashtags, such as “#YoVotoSi” (I Vote Yes) and “#SomosContinuidad” (We Are Continuity), were successfully delivered, he says, while text messages containing opposition slogans, such as “#YoVotoNo” (I Vote No) and “Abstencion” (Abstention), were not.
In his tweet, Sanchez wrote that he believes ETECSA, the state-run telecommunications company, is to blame.
Acabo de comprobarlo. @ETECSA_Cuba, una sociedad anónima cuyo accionista mayoritario es el Estado (no el Gobierno) censura términos no favorables a la aprobación del Proyecto de Constitución. Mayra Arevich debe dar explicaciones sobre este uso patrimonial de los bienes públicos. pic.twitter.com/bGPbbb08lo
— Eduardo Sánchez (@Eduardo_SG_) January 7, 2019
If enacted, the constitution would ensure that the Communist Party faces no opposition since it is the “superior political power of society and of the State.” An older draft from July included no mention of communism, but it was later added back in after concern from citizens, according to state-run media. – READ MORE