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LA HABANA.- El presidente de Estados Unidos, Barack Obama, cumplió con la protocolaria ceremonia de la ofrenda floral ante el monumento del héroe nacional cubano y prócer independentista José Martí, en la emblemática Plaza de la Revolución de La Habana.

Antes de depositar la corona de flores a los pies de la escultura de mármol, se vio ondear la bandera y se escuchó el himno de Estados Unidos en la Plaza de la Revolución, donde se pudo ver a Obama con la icónica efigie del revolucionario Ernesto “Che” Guevara de fondo.

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Internet 'revolution' in the works for Cuba?
Internet access in Cuba is limited (low bandwidth, said to be illegal in private homes, and said to be tightly controlled). Independent blogging criticizing the government is likely problematic, and some of those presented by the West as dissidents are bloggers. USA to the rescue? WSJ:
 * Mr. Obama, in an interview with ABC News that aired after his arrival Sunday in Havana, said that expanding Internet access for Cubans is key to changing the country, and he hinted of a possible deal on the island involving Google. “Google has been in talks with Cuba about a range of ways that it can operate on the island and contribute to Cuba’s efforts to upgrade its connectivity,” a senior administration official said on Monday. “Those discussions have made good progress but aren’t yet complete.” Google parent Alphabet Inc. said Monday it would provide laptops and virtual-reality headsets at a Havana museum as part of a program to provide free Internet access there. The Internet connection would come from state-owned telecommunications firm Etecsa.


 * Alphabet didn’t immediately respond to a question of whether Internet access at the museum would be censored. Alphabet said in an online post that the company is “exploring additional possibilities around increasing and improving Internet access, but they’re at early stages.” A person familiar with the company’s plans said Alphabet was considering laying fiber-optic cables for Internet service in Cuba, but plans are still nascent.


 * In the meantime, Russia & China mistrust Western IT and develop their own versions. (Yandex is suing Google for something in Russia, for example).

Follow-up

 * 'Free Rolling Stones concert in Havana'