Three days ago the Russian communications regulator had threatened to close Wikipedia. The motivation? According to Roskomnadzor, the page on the invasion of Ukraine reports “information distributed illegally”. Today comes the answer from Wikimedia, the foundation that runs the world’s largest online encyclopedia: “We will not back down”.
Wikipedia vs Russia: the official answer
“On March 1, the Wikipedia Foundation received a request from the Russian government to remove content related to the unwarranted invasion of Ukraine published by Wikipedia Russia volunteers. As always, even in this crisis, Wikipedia is an important source of reliable and factual information. Recognizing therefore its important role, we will not take any step backwards in the face of attempts to censor and intimidate members of your movement, ”Wikipedia writes to The Verge.
But what information did Russia want to censor? The “indicted” Wikipedia page speaks of numerous casualties among Russian military personnel and Ukrainian civilians, including childrenbut also of the need to withdraw funds from accounts in the banks of the Russian Federation in relation to the sanctions imposed by foreign states.
Wikimedia Russia asked the authorities to do not block access to the article, an intervention that would lead to the blocking of the entire Wikipedia. The Foundation also explained that the page changes constantly thanks to the work of different volunteers: “All these people have different points of view regarding what is happening and they are very careful to make sure that no one enters false or misleading information in the article. “
It is not the first time that the Russian government has threatened Wikipedia. In fact, in 2015 he had blocked the site due to an article on cannabis, which had been removed after a very short time. This time, however, the matter is different. Moscow is doing everything in its power to control the media and tell its very own version of the war.
“Banning access to reliable information in times of crisis can have life-changing consequences,” warns Wikipedia.