Cubans queue for computers as PC ban lifted, but web still outlawed

CUBANS are getting wired. The island’s communist government put desktop computers on sale to the public for the first time last Friday, ending a ban on PC sales, as another restriction on daily life fell away under President Raul Castro.

A tower-style QTECH PC and monitor costs nearly $780 (€505). While few Cubans can afford that, dozens gathered outside a Havana electronics store to peer in the window.

Inside, four clerks tore open boxes, hastily assembling display computers. By the time a sign went up listing the PCs specifications, more than a dozen shoppers were lined up to get in.