Here is the press release from Feb 3, 2023 from the WMF urging Pakistan to unblock Wikimedia Projects.
https://wikimediafoundation.org/news/2023/02/03/wikimedia-foundation-urges-pakistan-telecommunications-authority-to-restore-access-to-wikipedia-in-pakistan/ Appears the reason has to do with religious content https://netblocks.org/reports/wikipedia-restricted-in-pakistan-over-alleged-sacrilegious-content-nAg35pAp James On Tue, Mar 19, 2024 at 6:40 PM Neurodivergent Netizen < idoh.idreamofhor...@gmail.com> wrote: > IP block exemption is already automatically granted to admins, at least on > the English Wikipedia; it’s rarely needed enough that further automatic > exemption doesn’t really make sense. VPNs, typically costing money, aren’t > an accessible workaround, anyways. Let’s redirect attention back to getting > Commons unblocked. > > From, > I dream of horses > She/her > > > > > > On Mar 19, 2024, at 2:40 PM, Alessandro Marchetti via Wikimedia-l < > wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org> wrote: > > > It's intriguing (to me) to contemplate how the notion of restricting IP > editing in specific circumstances is often viewed as a violation of > principle, even when supported by examples or data, yet a restriction like > requiring long-standing users to jump through hoops just to use a VPN for > privacy—something standard nowadays—is considered necessary and acceptable. > Both policies aim to address issues while weighing the pros and cons and > inevitably curbing some degree of freedom. > > Personally, I question the efficiency of the VPN restriction. I hold a > different perspective: implementing a one or two-year, 100-500-edit > registration threshold for automatic exemption of registered users seems > reasonable. > > Nevertheless, it's important to recognize that nothing is inherently > necessary; these are always political and not technical choices. > > It's not just vandals ruining it; it's also the approach taken. By > granting trolls immense power to disrupt everyone's activities, you fuel > their mischief. Thus, every time these extreme measures are enforced and > standardized, they inevitably lead to wasted time and endless debates about > the status quo, and regular users pay a price. Not hypothetically, for > real.... we know. Whoever prioritizes the pursuit of trolls and vandals > over the work of regular users, de facto feeds the troll. > > It's important to clarify: as seasoned users, many of us have kinda > learned to navigate this "mess" and endure it... similar issues have been > grappled with for years, Commons management shows little sign of > improvement and we just don't care anymore. > > However, for those who haven't mastered it or are stuck in some nationwide > quagmire as this one, suggesting VPNs as a solution is impractical—unless > you anticipate tens of thousands of users from a country with millions of > inhabitants to individually request IP exemptions. It's evident that the > log of such a system would not be sustainable. > > I remain skeptical that an alternative solution will be implemented, given > the likelihood that the approach will mirror that of the VPN case or other > instances—utilizing massive and/or indefinite self-referential strict > measures that are seldom evaluated on the long term with some metrics. > > > > Il martedì 19 marzo 2024 alle ore 20:24:15 CET, Neurodivergent Netizen < > idoh.idreamofhor...@gmail.com> ha scritto: > > > _______________________________________________ > Wikimedia-l mailing list -- wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org, guidelines > at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > Public archives at > https://lists.wikimedia.org/hyperkitty/list/wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org/message/5BTBH6H4PEHX7CCUBYKUDKDXDC3VOAX5/ > To unsubscribe send an email to wikimedia-l-le...@lists.wikimedia.org > Unfortunately, there’s a history of an overwhelming amount of vandals > using VPNs to, well, vandalize Wikipedia, hence the block on known VPN and > the bureaucracy surrounding them. If the block is removed, it’ll quite > likely become a problem again. It really is a situation of people behaving > poorly ruining it for everyone. > > From, > I dream of horses > She/her > > > > > > On Mar 19, 2024, at 12:17 PM, Alessandro Marchetti via Wikimedia-l < > wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org> wrote: > > > > That doesn't seem logical or fair. If a user is registered and not already > blocked, the IPs they are using shouldn't matter at all. > Personally, I've never used a VPN before I got it this way (even living in > the PRC), but I understand that some people might need to do so for privacy > reasons. So, this restriction should be removed. Registered users should > have the freedom to access the platform how they want. If there's an issue > with a specific user, it's more appropriate to block their username rather > than restricting their access when logged in based on IP addresses. Adding > more bureaucracy isn't the solution if there isn't a problem to begin with. > > In any case, nothing will probably change. But please don't say that VPN > is a solution. People have already enough problems that adding more and > more passages. > > Il martedì 19 marzo 2024 alle ore 19:51:42 CET, Neurodivergent Netizen < > idoh.idreamofhor...@gmail.com> ha scritto: > > > A few years ago, I acquired a VPN as part of an antivirus package. > However, when I tried to use it for other services, I encountered an > unexpected issue switching on wiki platforms: despite being there as a > registered user, I found myself unable to edit them. > > So how can VPN be a solution? > > > Right, you would’ve had to use IP block exemption, which would require > some level of trust from the community that you aren’t a vandal or other > blocked user trying to circumspect said block. > > From, > I dream of horses > She/her > > > > > > On Mar 19, 2024, at 11:23 AM, Alessandro Marchetti via Wikimedia-l < > wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org> wrote: > > Why is there so much discussion about using VPNs as a solution? A few > years ago, I acquired a VPN as part of an antivirus package. However, when > I tried to use it for other services, I encountered an unexpected issue > switching on wiki platforms: despite being there as a registered user, I > found myself unable to edit them. > > So how can VPN be a solution? > > A. > > Il martedì 19 marzo 2024 alle ore 18:17:52 CET, Saqib Qayyum < > saqibqayy...@gmail.com> ha scritto: > > > Hello Mr James > > Certainly, using a VPN is a workaround, but it's worth noting that > obtaining an IP block exemption is still necessary to edit Commons, and > this is not always feasible for all users. Many may not even be aware of > its existence. For instance, I couldn't edit Commons since October 2020 > until I discovered the option for IP ban exemption. . > > And because of this, contributions to Commons from Pakistan have > significantly dwindled. For instance, I recall organizing Wiki Loves > Monuments Pakistan from 2014, where we used to receive thousands of images > annually. However, in recent years, the number of uploads has drastically > declined, with only a maximum of 100 photos being uploaded each year. This > trend underscores the challenges Pakistani users face in accessing and > contributing to the site. > -- > Saqib Qayyum > > > On Tue, Mar 19, 2024 at 9:55 PM James Heilman <jmh...@gmail.com> wrote: > > Can you not just use a VPN? > > James > > On Tue, Mar 19, 2024 at 9:29 PM Saqib Qayyum <saqibqayy...@gmail.com> > wrote: > > TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN: > > I am writing to you as a concerned volunteer from Pakistan regarding a > critical issue that has been persisting for several years now. Despite > multiple attempts to communicate this matter to members of the WMF's > communication team, there has been a disappointing lack of response or > acknowledgment. > > For the past several years, Commons has been blocked in Pakistan. While > Wikipedia was briefly blocked last year, the swift response from both > Pakistani and international news media led to its unblocking. However, the > blockade of Commons, being a less prominent site in comparison, has gone > largely unnoticed. > > Furthermore, several journalists I have spoken to have also expressed > frustration over their attempts to reach out to WMF staff regarding this > issue, only to receive no response. > > I urge the WMF to prioritize this matter and take immediate action to > address the ongoing blockage of Commons in Pakistan. > > Thank you for your attention to this urgent matter. > -- > Saqib Qayyum > https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Saqib > _______________________________________________ > Wikimedia-l mailing list -- wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org, guidelines > at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > Public archives at > https://lists.wikimedia.org/hyperkitty/list/wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org/message/H5SMMTKRTUI5QLDKOCLZNWCABGDK3UHL/ > To unsubscribe send an email to wikimedia-l-le...@lists.wikimedia.org > > > > -- > James Heilman > MD, CCFP-EM, Wikipedian > _______________________________________________ > Wikimedia-l mailing list -- wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org, guidelines > at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > Public archives at > https://lists.wikimedia.org/hyperkitty/list/wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org/message/53DBHAHGEAWIH5VI2X7YMEWYSWDHCBXM/ > To unsubscribe send an email to wikimedia-l-le...@lists.wikimedia.org > > _______________________________________________ > Wikimedia-l mailing list -- wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org, guidelines > at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > Public archives at > https://lists.wikimedia.org/hyperkitty/list/wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org/message/SPUJHE3YFDHS2OBQT6KTJOFK7WOSGDZF/ > > To unsubscribe send an email to wikimedia-l-le...@lists.wikimedia.org > _______________________________________________ > Wikimedia-l mailing list -- wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org, guidelines > at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > Public archives at > https://lists.wikimedia.org/hyperkitty/list/wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org/message/RPS6LSQ7DFBOI2FVML4F2TYTKEUVPSFQ/ > To unsubscribe send an email to wikimedia-l-le...@lists.wikimedia.org > > > _______________________________________________ > Wikimedia-l mailing list -- wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org, guidelines > at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > Public archives at > https://lists.wikimedia.org/hyperkitty/list/wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org/message/CMD6ZMRBLVEYSLR7A5OREASGAJPPTB6T/ > To unsubscribe send an email to wikimedia-l-le...@lists.wikimedia.org > _______________________________________________ > Wikimedia-l mailing list -- wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org, guidelines > at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > Public archives at > https://lists.wikimedia.org/hyperkitty/list/wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org/message/RWXA44WQNH2K4PVXLSDHCTBGQ3PR4JF7/ > To unsubscribe send an email to wikimedia-l-le...@lists.wikimedia.org > > > _______________________________________________ > Wikimedia-l mailing list -- wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org, guidelines > at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > Public archives at > https://lists.wikimedia.org/hyperkitty/list/wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org/message/EJI2VJIUIR2NGW7IDPL3GR6DOUQHEG7S/ > To unsubscribe send an email to wikimedia-l-le...@lists.wikimedia.org > > > _______________________________________________ > Wikimedia-l mailing list -- wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org, guidelines > at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > Public archives at > https://lists.wikimedia.org/hyperkitty/list/wikimedia-l@lists.wikimedia.org/message/DQLOG7SVBJAOXKG67FGAYJOM5MYBXSCG/ > To unsubscribe send an email to wikimedia-l-le...@lists.wikimedia.org -- James Heilman MD, CCFP-EM, Wikipedian
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