Wikipedia files appeal over removal of Russia invasion information
A Moscow court fined the Wikimedia Foundation $88,000 for refusing to remove what it termed disinformation from Russian-language Wikipedia articles on the war in Ukraine
13 June 2022 - 15:02
byGuy Faulconbridge
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
The Kremlin's Spasskaya Tower and St. Basil's Cathedral are seen through the art object in Zaryadye park in Moscow, Russia. File photo: REUTERS/EVGENIA NOVOZHENINA
London — The Wikimedia Foundation, which owns Wikipedia, has filed an appeal against a Moscow court decision demanding that it remove information related to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, arguing that people have a right to know the facts of the war.
A Moscow court fined the Wikimedia Foundation 5-million roubles ($88,000) for refusing to remove what it termed disinformation from Russian-language Wikipedia articles on the war including “The Russian Invasion of Ukraine”, “War Crimes during the Russian Invasion of Ukraine” and “Massacre in Bucha”.
“This decision implies that well-sourced, verified knowledge on Wikipedia that is inconsistent with Russian government accounts constitutes disinformation,” Stephen LaPorte, associate general counsel at the Wikimedia Foundation, said in a statement.
Wikipedia, which says it offers “the second draft of history”, is one of the few remaining major fact-checked Russian-language sources of information for Russians after a crackdown on media in Moscow.
“The government is targeting information that is vital to people’s lives in a time of crisis,” LaPorte said. “We urge the court to reconsider in favour of everyone’s rights to knowledge access and free expression.”
The Moscow court argued that what it cast as the disinformation on Wikipedia posed a risk to public order in Russia and that the Foundation, which is headquartered in San Francisco, California, was operating inside Russia.
The Foundation was prosecuted under a law about the failure to delete banned information. The case was brought by Russia’s communications regulator Roskomnadzor, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wikipedia.
The Wikipedia appeal, which was filed on June 6 with details released on Monday, argues that removing information is a violation of human rights. It said Russia had no jurisdiction over the Wikimedia Foundation, which was globally available in over 300 languages.
Wikipedia entries are written and edited by volunteers.
Narratives of the war, Europe’s biggest ground invasion since World War 2, vary drastically — and have become highly politicised with journalists in both Moscow and the West routinely accused of misreporting the war.
Ukraine says it is the victim of an unprovoked imperial-style land grab by Russia and that it will fight to the end to reclaim the territory that Russian forces have occupied. Kyiv has repeatedly asked the West for more help to fight Russia.
President Vladimir Putin and Russian officials do not use the words “war” or “invasion”. They cast it a “special military operation” aimed at preventing the persecution of Russian speakers in eastern Ukraine.
Putin also says the conflict is a turning point in Russian history: a revolt by Moscow against the United States, which he says has humiliated Russia since the 1991 fall of the Soviet Union and pushed to enlarge the Nato military alliance.
Ukraine and its Western backers deny Moscow’s claims that Russian speakers were persecuted. Kyiv says Russian forces have committed war crimes, including killings, torture and rape in places such as Bucha.
Russia says the alleged evidence of war crimes consists of carefully constructed fakes and that Ukraine and its Western backers have spread disinformation about Russian forces.
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
Wikipedia files appeal over removal of Russia invasion information
A Moscow court fined the Wikimedia Foundation $88,000 for refusing to remove what it termed disinformation from Russian-language Wikipedia articles on the war in Ukraine
London — The Wikimedia Foundation, which owns Wikipedia, has filed an appeal against a Moscow court decision demanding that it remove information related to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, arguing that people have a right to know the facts of the war.
A Moscow court fined the Wikimedia Foundation 5-million roubles ($88,000) for refusing to remove what it termed disinformation from Russian-language Wikipedia articles on the war including “The Russian Invasion of Ukraine”, “War Crimes during the Russian Invasion of Ukraine” and “Massacre in Bucha”.
“This decision implies that well-sourced, verified knowledge on Wikipedia that is inconsistent with Russian government accounts constitutes disinformation,” Stephen LaPorte, associate general counsel at the Wikimedia Foundation, said in a statement.
Wikipedia, which says it offers “the second draft of history”, is one of the few remaining major fact-checked Russian-language sources of information for Russians after a crackdown on media in Moscow.
“The government is targeting information that is vital to people’s lives in a time of crisis,” LaPorte said. “We urge the court to reconsider in favour of everyone’s rights to knowledge access and free expression.”
The Moscow court argued that what it cast as the disinformation on Wikipedia posed a risk to public order in Russia and that the Foundation, which is headquartered in San Francisco, California, was operating inside Russia.
The Foundation was prosecuted under a law about the failure to delete banned information. The case was brought by Russia’s communications regulator Roskomnadzor, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wikipedia.
The Wikipedia appeal, which was filed on June 6 with details released on Monday, argues that removing information is a violation of human rights. It said Russia had no jurisdiction over the Wikimedia Foundation, which was globally available in over 300 languages.
Wikipedia entries are written and edited by volunteers.
Narratives of the war, Europe’s biggest ground invasion since World War 2, vary drastically — and have become highly politicised with journalists in both Moscow and the West routinely accused of misreporting the war.
Ukraine says it is the victim of an unprovoked imperial-style land grab by Russia and that it will fight to the end to reclaim the territory that Russian forces have occupied. Kyiv has repeatedly asked the West for more help to fight Russia.
President Vladimir Putin and Russian officials do not use the words “war” or “invasion”. They cast it a “special military operation” aimed at preventing the persecution of Russian speakers in eastern Ukraine.
Putin also says the conflict is a turning point in Russian history: a revolt by Moscow against the United States, which he says has humiliated Russia since the 1991 fall of the Soviet Union and pushed to enlarge the Nato military alliance.
Ukraine and its Western backers deny Moscow’s claims that Russian speakers were persecuted. Kyiv says Russian forces have committed war crimes, including killings, torture and rape in places such as Bucha.
Russia says the alleged evidence of war crimes consists of carefully constructed fakes and that Ukraine and its Western backers have spread disinformation about Russian forces.
Reuters
Russia claims it hit Western weapons in strike in western Ukraine
Battle for Sievierodonetsk intensifies as Russia pounds zones where civilians are sheltering
Russia will carry the costs of Ukraine war for decades, Navalny ally says
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Most Read
Related Articles
Ukraine claims success in battle for Sievierodonetsk
Russia-backed court in Donetsk sentences ‘mercenaries’ to death
Published by Arena Holdings and distributed with the Financial Mail on the last Thursday of every month except December and January.