A Romanian lawyer who sought asylum in Germany, brought with him and showed to ISHR human rights activists one of these certificates which allowed him to own a typewriter. That was twenty years ago – today one would laugh about it, if it were not so serious and sad. Today we know what happened to Ceausescu’s regime and the dictator himself. And we still can feel how difficult and cumbersome it is to appraise the past and to heal the wounds left by such erroneous policies.
Similarly, Fidel Castro in Cuba is afraid that the population might find out too much about life in freedom. The Maximo Lider cannot stand the fact that journalists like Guillermo Farinas Hernandez have unlimited access to the internet. To prevent the Cuban population from receiving and disseminating independent information, the dictator is prepared to let the hunger-striking journalist die. Even state employees who have official internet access and whose job it is to find out about web site structures are prohibited from browsing on western web sites. If the employee fails to comply, he instantly loses his job.
Internet access in Cuba today is equivalent to possessing a typewriter in Romania twenty years ago. Castro’s secret service and police monitor anyone with a computer as well as all phone connection on the island.
International Society for Human Rights Germany
Nå Svend. Din ven bliver sammenlignet med Ceausescu. Men ham var du vel også med til at give Elefantordenen?
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