Tag: Wikipedia block

On Friday, February 3, 2023, Pakistan’s Telecommunications Authority blocked Wikipedia and Wikimedia projects. The Wikimedia Foundation calls on Pakistan to restore access to Wikipedia and Wikimedia projects in the country immediately.

Today, the Wikimedia Foundation welcomes the news that our case brought before  the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) to lift the block of Wikipedia in Turkey has been communicated to the Turkish Government and given priority status by the court, just two months after the case was filed with the court. Priority status is….

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has decided to expedite a case brought by the Wikimedia Foundation against the government of Turkey for blocking Wikipedia in the country. The case contends that the longstanding ban amounts to impermissible censorship and limits peoples’ fundamental rights to free expression and access to knowledge. The ban was….

Avrupa İnsan Hakları Mahkemesi (AİHM), Wikimedia Vakfı’nın ülkedeki Vikipedi’ye erişim engelinden ötürü Türk hükûmetine karşı açtığı bir davayı hızlandırmaya karar verdi. Davada, uzun zamandır devam eden yasağın kabul edilemez bir sansür boyutuna ulaştığı ve insanların ifade özgürlüğü ve bilgiye erişim temel haklarının sınırlandığı ileri sürülmekte. Erişim engeli Türk hükümeti tarafından Nisan 2017’de yürürlüğe kondu. Vikipedi’yi….

For more than two years, the people of Turkey have been unable to access or participate on Wikipedia—what Ege, a high school student in the country, calls the “source of the sources.” And they’re not the only ones affected. Without Wikipedia, the rest of the world is missing the voices, perspectives, and knowledge of Turkey’s….

At the Wikimedia Foundation, we believe that free access to knowledge and freedom of expression are fundamental human rights. We believe that when people have good information, they can make better decisions. Free access to information creates economic opportunity and empowers people to build sustainable livelihoods. Knowledge makes our societies more informed, more connected, and….

The Wikimedia Foundation is deeply concerned about recent statements attributed to the Turkish Minister of Transport, Maritime, and Communications Ahmet Arslan from Friday, the 18th of May, regarding the block of Wikipedia in Turkey. The Minister’s comments seriously misrepresent Wikipedia’s open editing model and efforts undertaken by the Wikimedia Foundation to lift the block.

To address these concerns, the Wikimedia Foundation has issued the following letter to Minister Arslan. We are publishing this letter openly here to further address any public confusion surrounding the Minister’s comments.

For a year, the people of Turkey have not been able to learn from, share, or contribute knowledge on Wikipedia. Without participation from Turkey, the world suffers. We remain committed to restoring access to Wikipedia in full for the people of Turkey. #WeMissTurkey

April 2018 marks one year that Wikipedia has been blocked across all languages in Turkey.

On Saturday, April 29, Wikipedia was blocked in Turkey. If it remains, this block will result in millions of people in Turkey losing access to free knowledge about their country and the world around them. We believe knowledge is a fundamental human right and urge the Turkish government to remove this block.