President Bush announced he would allow Cubans in the United States to send mobile phones to relatives still on the island, in an effort, perhaps, to see whether the Cuban government makes good on promises to allow Cubans greater access to technology and electronic goods:

Speaking in the White House East Room in a celebration marking the first “Day of Solidarity With the Cuban People,” the president said it was now up to the Cuban government to decide whether it would allow its citizens to receive the phones.

If they have the mobile units, he said, they should also be allowed to “speak freely in public.”

So we can tap into their phone calls. He continued:

It follows Cuban announcements that citizen there would be allowed to own cellphones and computers, and that DVDs and toasters would be available in coming years.

“If the Cuban regime is serious about improving the lives of the Cuban people,” Bush said, it should take steps to “make the changes meaningful.”

With computers, he said, they would have open access to the Internet, now prohibited, and with toasters, he added, they should live under an economic system in which they could “stop worrying about whether they have bread every day.”

It is the “height of hypocrisy to claim credit” for allowing the Cubans to have items “they can’t afford,” the president said.

True! It’s a good thing the U.S. are the gatekeepers of morality and is in a position to make sure Cuba gets its act together.

Bush allows Americans to send cellphones to relatives in Cuba [LA Times]