HAVANA: Cuban students called for a boycott of classes Wednesday over new mobile Internet tariffs that include steep fees for those who exceed their monthly data limits.
Cubans say the tariff hikes implemented by state telecoms company Etecsa on May 30 will leave them with only a few gigabytes of data per month as purchasing additional data will be prohibitively expensive.
Students have been particularly angered by the new pricing system, under which top-ups must be paid in hard-to-come-by-dollars or at a steep increment in Cuban pesos.
While acknowledging “progress” in negotiations with Etecsa, student union president Jose Almedia told AFP: “We want more.”
On Tuesday evening, student leaders at the University of Havana’s mathematics and informatics faculty called for a boycott of classes in order to try to force Etecsa to annul the tariff hikes.
Fellow leaders of the union chapter in the philosophy, history and sociology faculty backed the boycott, as did some students from the arts department.
It was not immediately clear how many students heeded the call for the protest.
But an arts student who attended classes on Wednesday told AFP there were “practically no students” in the faculty.
New pricing structure
Etecsa gave no forewarning of its new pricing structure, which it said was necessary to fund investment in infrastructure.
Rafael Gomez, an 18-year-old student at the University of Havana, said the new tariffs left mobile users with the bare minimum in terms of data.
“We were used to a certain system,” where customers can top up their credit as often as they like, he told AFP.
Now, they are limited to 6GB of data, which Gomez noted “is nothing and if you want to buy more, it costs over 3,000 pesos ($25), which you cannot afford on a regular Cuban salary,” Gomez said.
The average monthly salary on the communist island is 5,700 pesos, or $47.
Faced with the outcry from students, President Miguel Diaz-Canel said Sunday that the government was looking at “options” for “the most vulnerable sectors, including our dear students.”
After talks with student bodies Etecsa on Monday announced that students would be allowed two monthly top-ups at 360 pesos ($3), compared with one for the rest of the population.
Further top-ups have to be paid in dollars or at the eye-watering price of over 3,000 pesos.
The concessions failed to assuage the anger of many students.
Brian Gamez, a history student, told AFP he favored “peaceful protests” but was afraid that a mobilization could lead to vandalism.
The Cuban government has been wary of stoking popular discontent since July 2021 when thousands of people took to the streets in a rare show of defiance to demonstrate over shortages of fuel, food, medicine and electricity.
One person was killed and dozens injured in the protests, which Havana accused Washington of orchestrating.
Cuban students call boycott over mobile tariff hikes
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Cuban students call boycott over mobile tariff hikes
- Student leaders at the University of Havana’s mathematics and informatics faculty called for a boycott of classes in order to try to force state telecoms company to annul the tariff hikes
- The average monthly salary on the communist island is 5,700 pesos, or $47. Topping up data would cost the individual 3,000 pesos, or $25
Australia holds day of reflection to honor victims of Bondi Beach attack
- The gun attack, Australia’s worst in nearly 30 years, is being investigated as an act of terrorism targeting Jews
SYDNEY: Australia held a day of reflection on Sunday to honor those killed and wounded in a mass shooting that targeted a seaside Hanukkah celebration at Sydney’s Bondi Beach a week ago.
The gun attack, Australia’s worst in nearly 30 years, is being investigated as an act of terrorism targeting Jews. Authorities have ramped up patrols and policing across the country to prevent further antisemitic violence.
Australian flags were flown at half-mast on Sunday on federal and New South Wales state government buildings, with an official minute of silence to be held at 6:47 p.m. local time.
Authorities also invited Australians to light a candle on Sunday night “as a quiet act of remembrance with family, friends or loved ones” of the 15 people killed and dozens wounded in the attack, allegedly carried out by a father and son.
“At 6:47 p.m., you can light a candle in your window to remember the victims of the antisemitic terrorist attack in Bondi and support those who are grieving,” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on social media platform X late on Saturday.
Albanese, under pressure from critics who say his center-left government has not done enough to curb a surge in antisemitism since Israel launched its war in Gaza, has vowed to strengthen hate laws in the wake of the massacre.
On Saturday, the government of New South Wales, which includes Sydney, pledged to introduce a bill on Monday to ban the display of symbols and flags of “terrorist organizations,” including those of Al-Qaeda, Al Shabab, Boko Haram, Hamas, Hezbollah and Daesh.
Around 1,000 surf lifesavers returned to duty at Bondi Beach on Saturday, restarting patrols after a halt sparked by the shooting on the first evening of the Jewish festival.
A day earlier, Australia’s Jewish community gathered at Bondi Beach for prayers, while hundreds of swimmers and surfers formed a huge circle in the waters off the beach to honor victims.
Alleged gunman Sajid Akram, 50, was shot dead by police at the scene. His 24-year-old son Naveed Akram, who was also shot by police and emerged from a coma on Tuesday afternoon, has been charged with 59 offenses, including murder and terrorism, according to police. He remained in custody in hospital.
Authorities believe the pair was inspired by militant Sunni Muslim group Daesh, with flags of the group allegedly found in the car the two took to Bondi.
