Cuban Government Jamming 40 meter US HAM BAND

Give them an inch, and they'll take a mile. It only takes people not doing anything about it to proliferate it. Hide your head in the sand if you must. Others will not.

 

They did shut down the Internet 5 days ago. Why would they bother jamming ham radio? Censor the last bastion of free speech. C'mon Dave...

 

What planet are you on? That isn't how this works.

The Cubans are not invading 40m. They aren't going to occupy it. They aren't going to install more and more jammers sets if we don't attempt to operate on jammed frequencies.

Shakes head.

 

Maybe it's a test run. Imagine "someone" jamming all the frequencies and turning our fun expensive equipment into boat anchors.

 

Story: Once upon a time I had an online forum & chat acquaintance from Miami. His family was from Cuba. After a couple years of conversations, some incident in Cuba came up and he was asked his opinion about it.

He became quite short. He said that there were dangerous factions on both sides of Cuba issues in Miami. Further, he did not feel safe making any comments on the public internet about these issue due to personal safety concerns.

Hmmm. I am getting a feel for a different aspect of the milieu here.

 

Not what I said, but okay... Keep that head in the sand...

 

yes, but an inch could turn into much more..remember what the upper part of 40 meters used to be..now only a couple of communist countries there but was much worse............

 

I am not concerned with the jamming as much as what it portends. Obviously the government see's any communication as a great enough threat that it needs to stop it. So imagine what the people themselves are going through.
Thankfully their tech is decades old so satcom and sat internet is the work around but the people themselves are starving, need permits to work so the availability to high tech equipment is limited. Its also easy to id those who can afford it and have the wherewithal to use it. At that point radio becomes important to the masses as its the simplest, most accessible for of communication.
Then our contribution will be required. Better to get the jump on it now and raise awareness as soon as possible. They most likely will need our help as this drags on. We have some brilliant minds in this community so lets brainstorm instead of quibbling over things of little import.

 

William,
This is The United States of America and its citizens are protected by the First Amendment of its Constitution which protects the right of freedom of expression from government interference. What we are experiencing here is our rights are being infringed upon by a foreign entity. Do you agree with this statement?

 

Yes and no.

The real issue is violation of international treaty.

 

Political protests for a certain cause by Hams, with call signs for specific political purposes, might not end well. Think about all the other repressive regimes that we have "cordial" ham relationships and communications with, including former and probably current "jammers". Have you ever wondered if really expensive powerful stations in known repressive countries aren't a function of "special dispensation" and "ill gotten gains" that might not be in line with "our" democratic values? It seems probable that we are talking to some foreign hams who are "allowed" and NOT to others who are "not". What if we discover that one Middle Eastern Country is jamming another's for professed "national security" reasons? Special event for the "Humanitarian Crisis in ______." ? So it seems reasonable to me that if hams feel strongly about international communication actions/behaviors they contact elected representatives with concerns. But there have been strong historical reasons for keeping ham radio not overtly political, while doing our best to carry on communications with fellow hobbyists where and how we can.
And as first generation American born Cuban-American I feel strongly that posturing and self-righteousness has never, and will never help the Cuban people.

 

Here is an example of a great radio organization that promotes good will, and meets people "on the ground" in all sorts of places. https://fairs.org/
Groups like this can get in and out of places with all sorts of politics BECAUSE they promote the Amateur Radio hobby as apolitical who main message is "friendship".

 

Your worried about your license and the future of ham radio over people who want freedom? Posturing and self righteousness fall on you with you constant waving of the first generation flag. Take a look at yourself before you condemn others for caring.

 

Some bands are "ours", some are shared.

Ah....no.

Amateurs are the primary users on some bands and secondary on others. And the situation can be different in different ITU regions and in different parts of the same band.

There are limits to what FCC can "give away".

Ah, no.

The trick is how to complain, and who to complain to.

First off, the assumption that a frequency or frequencies are being intentionally "jammed" "in order to halt beneficial communications to its people" isn't the right approach. Amateurs aren't allowed to broadcast!

The correct approach is to document the interference and report it, without assuming the purpose or intent.