Re: [Wikimedia-l] Authorities in Myanmar blocks all languages of Wikipedia, says internet freedom watchdog = Qiuwen

[Gnangarra]

while its great to hear that people are getting around the blocks does a
high watched publicly available list need to publicise that traffic is
getting past the block, as this information potentially puts our friends at
risk.   Perhaps we should also be careful  that the edits being made
arent bad faith military junta actors.

On Sun, 14 Mar 2021 at 09:17, Risker  wrote:

> Anecdotally, we on English Wikipedia have received multiple requests for
> IP block exemption from residents of Myanmar, including requests for both
> local and global IP
>
> On Sat, 13 Mar 2021 at 19:56, Kunal Mehta  wrote:
>
>> Hi,
>>
>> On 2/19/21 1:08 PM, 《求闻》编译组／Qiuwen WMCug wrote:
>> > Netblocks provided additional information in a picture attached to the
>> tweet,
>> > suggests that they have tested the connectivity of Wikipedia in English
>> and
>> > French, Wikidata, and wikimedia.org, with none of them accessible.
>> This may
>> > intimate that it is highly that the Burmese authorities not only
>> blocked "all
>> > language editions of Wikipedia," but all Wikimedia projects, as a
>> whole. The
>> > picture also suggests that Wikipedia remains inaccessible across four
>> different
>> > internet service providers in Myanmar.
>>
>> NetBlocks really isn't a reliable source, see .
>>
>> Instead, I'd recommend following OONI, which published their own
>> findings a few days ago:
>> <
>> https://ooni.org/post/2021-myanmar-internet-blocks-and-outages/#blocking-of-wikipedia
>> >.
>>
>> -- Legoktm
>>
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Re: [Wikimedia-l] Authorities in Myanmar blocks all languages of Wikipedia, says internet freedom watchdog = Qiuwen

[Risker]

Anecdotally, we on English Wikipedia have received multiple requests for IP
block exemption from residents of Myanmar, including requests for both
local and global IP

On Sat, 13 Mar 2021 at 19:56, Kunal Mehta  wrote:

> Hi,
>
> On 2/19/21 1:08 PM, 《求闻》编译组／Qiuwen WMCug wrote:
> > Netblocks provided additional information in a picture attached to the
> tweet,
> > suggests that they have tested the connectivity of Wikipedia in English
> and
> > French, Wikidata, and wikimedia.org, with none of them accessible. This
> may
> > intimate that it is highly that the Burmese authorities not only blocked
> "all
> > language editions of Wikipedia," but all Wikimedia projects, as a whole.
> The
> > picture also suggests that Wikipedia remains inaccessible across four
> different
> > internet service providers in Myanmar.
>
> NetBlocks really isn't a reliable source, see .
>
> Instead, I'd recommend following OONI, which published their own
> findings a few days ago:
> <
> https://ooni.org/post/2021-myanmar-internet-blocks-and-outages/#blocking-of-wikipedia
> >.
>
> -- Legoktm
>
> ___
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Re: [Wikimedia-l] Authorities in Myanmar blocks all languages of Wikipedia, says internet freedom watchdog = Qiuwen

[Kunal Mehta]

Hi,

On 2/19/21 1:08 PM, 《求闻》编译组／Qiuwen WMCug wrote:

Netblocks provided additional information in a picture attached to the tweet,
suggests that they have tested the connectivity of Wikipedia in English and
French, Wikidata, and wikimedia.org, with none of them accessible. This may
intimate that it is highly that the Burmese authorities not only blocked "all
language editions of Wikipedia," but all Wikimedia projects, as a whole. The
picture also suggests that Wikipedia remains inaccessible across four different
internet service providers in Myanmar.


NetBlocks really isn't a reliable source, see .

Instead, I'd recommend following OONI, which published their own 
findings a few days ago: 
.


-- Legoktm

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Re: [Wikimedia-l] Authorities in Myanmar blocks all languages of Wikipedia, says internet freedom watchdog = Qiuwen

[Jan Gerlach]

Hello everyone

Thanks for alerting the list to this. Various teams at the Foundation have
been monitoring the situation in Myanmar and continue to do so. While we
are currently still gathering data to better understand what is actually
happening, our initial analysis indicates that the information about a
complete block of Wikipedia is not accurate. We are still seeing traffic to
our servers from various ISPs in the country.

We will send an update once we have enough information.

Best regards,
Jan


==



Jan Gerlach
Lead Public Policy Manager
Wikimedia Foundation
1 Montgomery Street, Suite 1600
San Francisco, CA 94104
jgerl...@wikimedia.org
@pd_w 
@wikimediapolicy 



On Fri, Feb 19, 2021 at 5:00 PM Alexander N Krassotkin 
wrote:

> On Russian Wikinews:
>
> Устроившая переворот в Мьянме хунта заблокировала Википедию
> https://ru.wikinews.org/?curid=8842919
>
> We also await official comment from the Wikimedia Foundation.
>
> sasha.
>
> On Fri, Feb 19, 2021 at 11:09 PM 《求闻》编译组／Qiuwen WMCug
>  wrote:
> >
> > BEIJING, Feb. 20 (Qiuwen) - NetBlocks, the internet freedom advocacy
> group,
> > says Wikipedia was blocked in Myanmar by the authorities.
> >
> > NetBlocks confirms "all language editions of Wikipedia" were down in
> Myanmar
> > starting Thursday morning local time. In a tweet [1], Netblocks said,
> this is
> > "part of a widening post-coup internet censorship regime imposed by the
> > military junta."
> >
> > Netblocks provided additional information in a picture attached to the
> tweet,
> > suggests that they have tested the connectivity of Wikipedia in English
> and
> > French, Wikidata, and wikimedia.org, with none of them accessible. This
> may
> > intimate that it is highly that the Burmese authorities not only blocked
> "all
> > language editions of Wikipedia," but all Wikimedia projects, as a whole.
> The
> > picture also suggests that Wikipedia remains inaccessible across four
> different
> > internet service providers in Myanmar.
> >
> > It is likely that the Burmese authorities are blocking Wikimedia projects
> > using the same tactic seen in China and some other countries, which is by
> > blocking the main IP address Wikipedia and its sister projects uses. All
> > Wikimedia projects share the same IP address, which makes it an easy
> target by
> > censors to implement a block.
> >
> > Qiuwen noticed that starting from February 19th, there was a noticeable
> > increase of edits made from IP addresses that were likely to be used for
> VPNs
> > on Burmese Wikipedia, signaling locals may have to use VPNs to get onto
> > Wikipedia already. On Friday evening local time, an administrator posted
> a
> > message on the Village Pump of Burmese Wikipedia, explaining the use of
> "IP
> > block exemption," a special MediaWiki flag, similar to rollback and
> patrol,
> > allowing users with the flag to edit from VPNs. A similar banner was
> also set
> > up, visible on every page of Burmese Wikipedia. The "IP block exemption"
> flag
> > is widely issued to users of Chinese Wikipedia, and previously, users of
> > Turkish Wikipedia, who needed VPNs to access.
> >
> > Internet blackouts are increasingly common in Myanmar and across the
> world.
> > The military shut down the internet before they attempted the coup on
> February
> > \1st, and the military authority has blocked or temporarily blocked
> Facebook
> > and other social media platforms starting February 3rd. Usages of VPNs
> > reportedly skyrocketed for locals eager to access blocked websites.
> NetBlocks
> > says the authorities have been implementing an "internet curfew," as the
> > internet shut down during the nights.
> >
> > This also means Myanmar has joined an increasingly bigger club of
> countries
> > that had blocked Wikipedia. Its recent members include Iran, which
> blocked
> > Wikipedia for around 24 hours in March 2020, and Venezuela in January
> 2019.
> > In countries such as Iran, Internet blackouts also interfered with the
> > Wikimedia movement, such as Iran's week-long blackout in November 2019
> had
> > delayed the Wikipedia Asian Month edit-a-thon. China, the "permanent
> member"
> > of the club, blocked Wikipedia since 2015. It is not clear whether or
> not the
> > block on Wikimedia projects will be lifted in the future, similar to
> what the
> > Iranian and Turkish authorities had done.
> >
> > The Wikimedia Foundation has yet to comment on the block. Myanmar
> Wikimedia
> > Community User Group, the Wikimedia user group representing Myanmar, has
> also
> > yet to comment. Their Facebook page was last updated on January 16th, two
> > weeks before the military coup.
> >
> > 
> > Qiuwen is a news service operated by the Wikimedians of Mainland China
> user group[2].
> > Follow us for the latest Wikimedia news in greater China.
> > CC BY-SA 4.0
> >
> > Follow us on Telegram: https://t.me/Qiuwen
> >
> > [1]: 

Re: [Wikimedia-l] Authorities in Myanmar blocks all languages of Wikipedia, says internet freedom watchdog = Qiuwen

[Alexander N Krassotkin]

On Russian Wikinews:

Устроившая переворот в Мьянме хунта заблокировала Википедию
https://ru.wikinews.org/?curid=8842919

We also await official comment from the Wikimedia Foundation.

sasha.

On Fri, Feb 19, 2021 at 11:09 PM 《求闻》编译组／Qiuwen WMCug
 wrote:
>
> BEIJING, Feb. 20 (Qiuwen) - NetBlocks, the internet freedom advocacy group,
> says Wikipedia was blocked in Myanmar by the authorities.
>
> NetBlocks confirms "all language editions of Wikipedia" were down in Myanmar
> starting Thursday morning local time. In a tweet [1], Netblocks said, this is
> "part of a widening post-coup internet censorship regime imposed by the
> military junta."
>
> Netblocks provided additional information in a picture attached to the tweet,
> suggests that they have tested the connectivity of Wikipedia in English and
> French, Wikidata, and wikimedia.org, with none of them accessible. This may
> intimate that it is highly that the Burmese authorities not only blocked "all
> language editions of Wikipedia," but all Wikimedia projects, as a whole. The
> picture also suggests that Wikipedia remains inaccessible across four 
> different
> internet service providers in Myanmar.
>
> It is likely that the Burmese authorities are blocking Wikimedia projects
> using the same tactic seen in China and some other countries, which is by
> blocking the main IP address Wikipedia and its sister projects uses. All
> Wikimedia projects share the same IP address, which makes it an easy target by
> censors to implement a block.
>
> Qiuwen noticed that starting from February 19th, there was a noticeable
> increase of edits made from IP addresses that were likely to be used for VPNs
> on Burmese Wikipedia, signaling locals may have to use VPNs to get onto
> Wikipedia already. On Friday evening local time, an administrator posted a
> message on the Village Pump of Burmese Wikipedia, explaining the use of "IP
> block exemption," a special MediaWiki flag, similar to rollback and patrol,
> allowing users with the flag to edit from VPNs. A similar banner was also set
> up, visible on every page of Burmese Wikipedia. The "IP block exemption" flag
> is widely issued to users of Chinese Wikipedia, and previously, users of
> Turkish Wikipedia, who needed VPNs to access.
>
> Internet blackouts are increasingly common in Myanmar and across the world.
> The military shut down the internet before they attempted the coup on February
> \1st, and the military authority has blocked or temporarily blocked Facebook
> and other social media platforms starting February 3rd. Usages of VPNs
> reportedly skyrocketed for locals eager to access blocked websites. NetBlocks
> says the authorities have been implementing an "internet curfew," as the
> internet shut down during the nights.
>
> This also means Myanmar has joined an increasingly bigger club of countries
> that had blocked Wikipedia. Its recent members include Iran, which blocked
> Wikipedia for around 24 hours in March 2020, and Venezuela in January 2019.
> In countries such as Iran, Internet blackouts also interfered with the
> Wikimedia movement, such as Iran's week-long blackout in November 2019 had
> delayed the Wikipedia Asian Month edit-a-thon. China, the "permanent member"
> of the club, blocked Wikipedia since 2015. It is not clear whether or not the
> block on Wikimedia projects will be lifted in the future, similar to what the
> Iranian and Turkish authorities had done.
>
> The Wikimedia Foundation has yet to comment on the block. Myanmar Wikimedia
> Community User Group, the Wikimedia user group representing Myanmar, has also
> yet to comment. Their Facebook page was last updated on January 16th, two
> weeks before the military coup.
>
> 
> Qiuwen is a news service operated by the Wikimedians of Mainland China user 
> group[2].
> Follow us for the latest Wikimedia news in greater China.
> CC BY-SA 4.0
>
> Follow us on Telegram: https://t.me/Qiuwen
>
> [1]: https://twitter.com/netblocks/status/1362814793502097409
> [2]: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedians_of_Mainland_China
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[Wikimedia-l] Authorities in Myanmar blocks all languages of Wikipedia, says internet freedom watchdog = Qiuwen

[《求闻》编译组／Qiuwen WMCug]

BEIJING, Feb. 20 (Qiuwen) - NetBlocks, the internet freedom advocacy group, 
says Wikipedia was blocked in Myanmar by the authorities. 

NetBlocks confirms "all language editions of Wikipedia" were down in Myanmar 
starting Thursday morning local time. In a tweet [1], Netblocks said, this is 
"part of a widening post-coup internet censorship regime imposed by the 
military junta." 

Netblocks provided additional information in a picture attached to the tweet, 
suggests that they have tested the connectivity of Wikipedia in English and 
French, Wikidata, and wikimedia.org, with none of them accessible. This may 
intimate that it is highly that the Burmese authorities not only blocked "all 
language editions of Wikipedia," but all Wikimedia projects, as a whole. The 
picture also suggests that Wikipedia remains inaccessible across four different 
internet service providers in Myanmar.

It is likely that the Burmese authorities are blocking Wikimedia projects 
using the same tactic seen in China and some other countries, which is by 
blocking the main IP address Wikipedia and its sister projects uses. All 
Wikimedia projects share the same IP address, which makes it an easy target by 
censors to implement a block.

Qiuwen noticed that starting from February 19th, there was a noticeable 
increase of edits made from IP addresses that were likely to be used for VPNs 
on Burmese Wikipedia, signaling locals may have to use VPNs to get onto 
Wikipedia already. On Friday evening local time, an administrator posted a 
message on the Village Pump of Burmese Wikipedia, explaining the use of "IP 
block exemption," a special MediaWiki flag, similar to rollback and patrol, 
allowing users with the flag to edit from VPNs. A similar banner was also set 
up, visible on every page of Burmese Wikipedia. The "IP block exemption" flag 
is widely issued to users of Chinese Wikipedia, and previously, users of 
Turkish Wikipedia, who needed VPNs to access. 

Internet blackouts are increasingly common in Myanmar and across the world. 
The military shut down the internet before they attempted the coup on February 
\1st, and the military authority has blocked or temporarily blocked Facebook 
and other social media platforms starting February 3rd. Usages of VPNs 
reportedly skyrocketed for locals eager to access blocked websites. NetBlocks 
says the authorities have been implementing an "internet curfew," as the 
internet shut down during the nights. 

This also means Myanmar has joined an increasingly bigger club of countries 
that had blocked Wikipedia. Its recent members include Iran, which blocked 
Wikipedia for around 24 hours in March 2020, and Venezuela in January 2019. 
In countries such as Iran, Internet blackouts also interfered with the 
Wikimedia movement, such as Iran's week-long blackout in November 2019 had 
delayed the Wikipedia Asian Month edit-a-thon. China, the "permanent member" 
of the club, blocked Wikipedia since 2015. It is not clear whether or not the 
block on Wikimedia projects will be lifted in the future, similar to what the 
Iranian and Turkish authorities had done.

The Wikimedia Foundation has yet to comment on the block. Myanmar Wikimedia 
Community User Group, the Wikimedia user group representing Myanmar, has also 
yet to comment. Their Facebook page was last updated on January 16th, two 
weeks before the military coup.


Qiuwen is a news service operated by the Wikimedians of Mainland China user 
group[2]. 
Follow us for the latest Wikimedia news in greater China.
CC BY-SA 4.0

Follow us on Telegram: https://t.me/Qiuwen

[1]: https://twitter.com/netblocks/status/1362814793502097409
[2]: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedians_of_Mainland_China
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