I personally object to the decision of the jury and hope the location is changed and the decision overturned on the following basis:
Safety of conference participants, namely transgendered and transsexual individuals. Lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals are at a significantly lower level of risk.
The risk for T. individuals is so great that it would be totally unsafe for them to enter the country at all.
This is not a matter of boycotting a country because we disagree with its politics, this is a matter of not holding a conference in a country because we cannot ensure the safety of ALL participants.
Just because you are not transgendered or transsexual yourself does not mean it is not your responsibility to ensure that people who wish to participate who ARE are not as safe as possible.
Mark
On 10/10/2007, Oldak Quill oldakquill@gmail.com wrote:
On 10/10/2007, Aude audevivere@gmail.com wrote:
In this thread, I see people raising the issues regarding the Egyptian government. As we know, it's not a democracy and the Egyptian people did not choose the government. The government there is more repressive, but not so much so (like Burma) that we can't have Wikimania there. To penalize Egyptian Wikimedians (and those from Jordan and other nearby places), for what their government does is not cool with me.
Deciding to not hold Wikimania in a particular country is not penalisation of those who live there. People from that country would be free to attend Wikimania, where ever it is held.
At the same time, I know plenty of people from Europe, Canada, the Middle East and elsewhere in the world... I don't necessarily approve of things my government does, and it's important that they distinguish me (as an individual American), from what my government does (including providing enormous amounts of aid to the Egyptian government and other undemocratic regimes).
http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/0412/p07s01-wome.html http://www1.usaid.gov/our_work/features/egypt/ http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/12/AR2006061201...
Thinking about that, if you are not happy with repressive things the Egyptian government does, maybe it's time to write congress, ask questions of the U.S. presidential candidates, etc. about our policy of supporting such regimes.
http://www.house.gov/writerep/ http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
My objection to Egypt is more pragmatic than this. The fact that GLBT Wikimedians may be put in danger of arrest (and female Wikimedians in danger of harassment) by holding the conference in Egypt is enough to rule it out by my standards. This worry is particularly apparent if GLBT Wikimedians wish to attend the conference with their partners. Are two people of the same sex allowed to share double rooms in hotels in Egypt?
Prosecution of homosexuality in Egypt: http://www.guardian.co.uk/Archive/Article/0,4273,4302213,00.html
en.wikipedia's "LGBT rights in Egypt" article (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_Egypt) details arrests of gay tourists in Egypt.
-- Oldak Quill (oldakquill@gmail.com)
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