WikimediaIndia-l May 2021

wikimediaindia-l@lists.wikimedia.org

17 participants
22 discussions

Condition of a Wikimedian, arrested by UP Police
by praveenp 09 Sep '22

09 Sep '22

Dear Indian Wikimedians, As many of you may have known, one of our fellow Wikimedian was arrested by Uttar Pradesh Police in October 2020. His name is Siddique Kappan (His wikimedia username is User:Sidheeq). He is from Kerala, and he was active in Wikimedia projects (mainly in Malayalam Wikipedia) until his arrest. Incidently he is a journalist and he was arrested from the home of Hathras rape and murder victim while reporting the victim Dalit girl's family members. UP Police has slapped Sedition, Terrorism as well as UAPA charges against him. Kappen is diabetic and now COVID positive. He was admitted to hospital only after he collapsed in the jail cell. With his deteriorating health, it was accused that Kappan was chained to hospital bed like an animal. Today's news reports say that he is in critical condition. (You could always google "Siddique Kappan") As a tone deaf people I don't expect anything from this mail, I just wish to share the information. Stay Inside, Stay Complementary (non-critical), Stay safe, Stay healthy. User:Praveenp ------------- Siddique's en.wiki page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Sidheeq

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Subhas Chandra Bose's 125th birth anniversary Wikimedia celebration
by Bodhisattwa Mandal 20 Apr '22

20 Apr '22

Hello all, 23 January 2022 will mark the 125th birth anniversary of Indian freedom fighter Subhas Chandra Bose. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subhas_Chandra_Bose West Bengal Wikimedians User Group is planning to conduct a series of events to improve free-content related to Subhas Chandra Bose on different Wikimedia sites. Today, on the 124th birth anniversary of Bose, we have inaugurated the initiative and will continue to work for the next one year. Learn more about the program here- https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Subhas_Chandra_Bose%27s_125th_birth_anniver… (under construction and to be expanded gradually). You may also read a blog post on Diff: https://diff.wikimedia.org/2020/12/24/125th-birth-anniversary-of-subhas-cha… If you like, you can share your thoughts and good wishes here: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Talk:Subhas_Chandra_Bose%27s_125th_birth_an… Regards, Bodhisattwa On behalf of West Bengal Wikimedians User Group

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India grants and communication to Wikimediaindia-l
by Tito Dutta 05 Jan '22

05 Jan '22

Namaskara, This might be some food for thought, and inputs are welcome. India mailing list is the largest and most widely used Wikimedia mailing list for the Indian community. Could we have a practice that all grant requests from the country (or related to) are informed on the Wikimediaindia-l mailing list? Whether it is a state-level, project-level, language-level etc, or whether it is a rapid grant, project grant etc it would be good to see the plan details on this mailing list in advance. It will ensure greater visibility, and it will also ensure the community's understanding/knowing of each other's projects. If we can have a practice like this, we can inform Wikimedia, or CR team or relevant support structure(s) as an India community practice. This post is in my personal capacity. Please assume good faith Regards, User:Titodutta

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Stay Safe Stay Connected: Session II: Wikisource community discussion
by Jayanta Nath 05 Jun '21

05 Jun '21

Hello, The second session of Stay Safe Stay connected Stay Connected, a lightweight interaction zone for the Wikimedians in India, will take place on Saturday 5 June 2021 at 5 pm to 6:30 pm IST (11:30 am to 1:00 pm UTC). Please see the event page here: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Stay_safe,_stay_connected#Session_II This will be a Wikisource community fraternity meeting where Wikisource editors can meet and talk to each other. We may speak about the ongoing and upcoming Wikisource projects, share interesting news and updates around Wikisource. Wikisource editors from all around India are expected to be attending the call. User:VIGNERON, French Wikisource editor, and User:Samwilson, from English Wikisource, will be attending. If you are a Wikisource editor or enthusiast, please join this Wikisource community call. Please fill this short form, if you are interested to attend: https://forms.gle/e85k84tX4oroKkjx7 For any query, please email wmwm(a)cis-india.org Stay safe, stay connected. Regards, Jayanta Note: 1) The session will be hosted on Zoom and this session will be recorded. 2) Please feel free to speak in your native language during the call. That's cool. We'll try to translate. 3) In the open session or during discussion, you may speak about your/your community's Wikisource work. If you want to show any page/project keep the link handy.

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Internet Support for Wikimedians in India 2021
by Nitesh Gill 30 May '21

30 May '21

Hello all, We hope that you are doing well. We wanted to inform you that A2K is going to initiate an internet support program for the Wikimedians in India from 1 June 2021. This will continue till 31 August 2021. It will be a part of Project Tiger, this time we are starting with the internet support, writing contest and other things that will follow afterwards. Currently in this first phase applications for the Internet will be accepted. An event page has been started, you can visit the link: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Internet_support_for_Wikimedians_in_India You may also see the FAQ section: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Internet_support_for_Wikimedians_in_India#F… For reviewing the applications, there will be a committee that will make decisions for the applications. After the committee's response, support will be provided. For more information please visit the event page (linked above). The criteria and application procedure is set up already. Please go through the page and apply if you find you are eligible for applying. Please also share this information with your community. Stay safe, stay connected, Thanks & Regards, Nitesh Gill

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Wikimania 2021 Session Submission Forms are open
by Bodhisattwa Mandal 28 May '21

28 May '21

Dear Wikimedians, We are excited to share some updates with you regarding Wikimania 2021. Session Submission forms are now live until 18 June, 2021 for both individuals and affiliates! If you’re looking to lead a session at Wikimania 2021, please check the following links: - Program Submissions <https://wikimania.wikimedia.org/wiki/2021:Submissions> - Session Submission Guidelines <https://wikimania.wikimedia.org/wiki/2021:Submission_Guidelines> - <https://wikimania.wikimedia.org/wiki/2021:Submission_Guidelines>FAQ <https://wikimania.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimania> - - Wikimania 2021 Wiki Page <https://wikimania.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimania> is also now LIVE, you can now refer to this page for all information regarding Wikimania 2021! However, it is a live and under construction page. You are most welcome to suggest any improvement of the page. - We look forward to receiving your submissions and suggestions. Have a great weekend and see you all soon. Best Wishes, Bodhisattwa, (on behalf of the Wikimania 2021 Core Organizing Team)

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"Wikipedia is swimming in money—why is it begging people to donate?" - by Andreas Kolbe
by Bodhisattwa Mandal 25 May '21

25 May '21

Hi all An article by Andreas Kolbe on WMF fundraising practices has been published recently. I think this is worth reading as the same false and negative impressions mentioned here were widely circulated among Indian netizens during the last India Fundraising campaign as WMF "begged" for money for "survival". https://www.dailydot.com/debug/wikipedia-endownemnt-fundraising/ Regards, Bodhisattwa

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Stay safe, stay connected, an interaction zone: First talk with Asaf Bartov on 22 May 2021, Saturday
by টিটো দত্ত Tito Dutta 22 May '21

22 May '21

Hello, Hope this email finds you safe in this difficult time. Many people and Wikimedians have been affected or have suffered a loss. In an effort to ensure community solidarity where Wikimedians can meet and talk to each other, we are starting a lightweight interaction zone for the Wikimedians in India. This interaction zone is named "Stay Safe Stay Connected". Please see the event page here: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Stay_safe,_stay_connected The first talk will be on Saturday, 22 May 2021, 7 pm to 8 pm IST (1:30 pm to 2:30 pm UTC). Asaf Bartov will be the guest of the session. Asaf is a familiar name and he has been a mentor to many Wikimedians in India. This will be a lightweight discussion on general Wiki-topic (note the exact agenda will be updated on the event page before the event) We invite you to join the first talk. The session will be hosted on Zoom. Please fill this short form, if you are interested to attend the first interactive talk on 22 May 2021 https://forms.gle/e85k84tX4oroKkjx7 Please follow the event page for updates. Stay safe, stay connected! Regards, Tito Dutta

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Join the new Regional Committees for Grants
by Julia Brungs 21 May '21

21 May '21

Dear all, We hope this email finds you well and safe. The COVID 19 situation continues to affect many of us across the globe and our thoughts are with everyone affected. We are also aware that there are several processes currently in progress that demand volunteer time and we do not want to add more work to anyone's plate. We do want to draw your attention to our new Regional Committees for Grants though as they are an opportunity for you to have an active say in the future of our Movement! 📣 So today, we invite you to join our new Regional Committees for Grants! 📣 We encourage Wikimedians and Free Knowledge advocates to be part of the new Regional Committees that the WMF Community Resources team is setting up as part of the grants strategy relaunch [1]. You will be a key strategic thought partner to help understand the complexities of any region, provide knowledge and expertise to applicants, to support successful movement activities, and make funding decisions for grant applications in the region. 👉Find out more on meta [2]. Regional Committees will be established for the following regions: - Middle East and Africa - SAARC [3] region (Includes Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka) - East, Southeast Asia, and Pacific (ESEAP) region - Latin America (LATAM) and The Caribbean - United States and Canada - Northern and Western Europe - Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) 👉All details about the Committees and how to apply can be found on meta [4]. Applications have to be submitted by *June 4, 2021*! If you have any questions or comments, please use the meta discussion page [5]. Please do share this announcement widely with your Network. Best wishes, Julia on behalf of the Community Resources Team [1] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Community_Resources/Grants_Strategy_Relaunc… [2] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Community_Resources/Grants_Strategy_Relaunc… [3] https://www.saarc-sec.org/index.php/about-saarc/about-saarc [4] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Community_Resources/Grants_Strategy_Relaunc… [5] https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Talk:Community_Resources/Grants_Strategy_Re… -- *Julia Brungs* Senior Community Relations Specialist Wikimedia Foundation <https://wikimediafoundation.org/>

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Fwd: [Wikimedia-l] COVID-19 second wave and protection of our most valuable movement asset
by টিটো দত্ত Tito Dutta 20 May '21

20 May '21

A brief update has been posted while answering a question on Wikimedia-l. The page is under construction, and an announcement on the India mailing list will be made separately with details in a few days. ---------- Forwarded message --------- প্রেরক: Bodhisattwa Mandal <bodhisattwa.rgkmc(a)gmail.com> Date: বুধ, ২৮ এপ্রিল, ২০২১ তারিখে ১০:১৬ PM টায় Subject: Re: [Wikimedia-l] COVID-19 second wave and protection of our most valuable movement asset To: Wikimedia Mailing List <wikimedia-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org> Hello Andreas and all, There is some good news. Wikimedia Foundation Community Resources team has given permission to CIS-A2K to allot funds to reimburse vaccines, send COVID protection kits and provide counselling for Wikimedia volunteers in India. CIS-A2K has consulted Foreign Currency Regulation Act expert lawyers and got confirmation that the program can be executed as per the law of India. With this progress, we are now good to go. We had formed a 5-members committee of physicians (4 of them) from the Indian Wikimedia volunteer community. They had their first meeting almost an hour ago to decide the next steps to provide support as quickly and efficiently as possible. The action points are noted from the meeting and within a few days, we are sure that we will be able to provide support to the volunteers. A meta page is also being drafted, which will undergo expansion and modification in the next few years. The lnk is here - https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/COVID-19_support_for_Wikimedians/India Regards, Bodhisattwa On Wed, 28 Apr 2021 at 20:24, Andreas Kolbe <jayen466(a)gmail.com> wrote: > Dear Bodhisattwa, > > Could I ask you to please keep us up to date on the further Wikimedia > response to your request? > > I would love to hear about anything good that is happening as a result of > your having asked here – and if nothing useful is happening, I would love > to hear about that too – here or by private email, if you prefer. > > I am very aware that the WMF ran its first fundraising campaign in India > this fiscal year, and that one of the fundraising banner messages asked > people ... "to donate. Show the volunteers who bring you reliable neutral > information that their work matters."[1] > > And as you can read in my other post today, it's not like the Wikimedia > Foundation is poor. > > Be safe. > Andreas > > [1] > https://tech.hindustantimes.com/tech/news/wikipedia-makes-an-awkward-reques… > > > > > > > Dear Wikimedians, > > > > We (the community resources team at the Wikimedia Foundation) have been in > contact with colleagues from the Wikimedia movement in India and wanted to > share some of the preliminary outcomes of our discussions. > > > > Firstly, we want to acknowledge the disastrous effect COVID-19 has had on > Wikimedia communities and its members across the movement. The COVID-19 > pandemic has affected many of us in both direct and indirect ways. > > > > As has been noted by others on this email chain, we all agree that > Wikimedia volunteers are the most valuable assets of our movement. As > mentioned in the previous email, providing insurance support to Wikimedia > volunteers in India would not have been possible due to regulatory and > legal challenges. However, we are committed to provide other help and > service to ensure that the movement is supported. > > > > As discussed on this chain, we feel that our partners are the best placed > to understand the needs locally and regionally. We are therefore working > with colleagues from India directly to provide practical help and support > to the movement there including access to vaccines, PPE kits, disseminating > knowledge and fighting misinformation. We will continue to partner with > them and others to establish criteria in line with our mission to support > the communities. These are exceptional times, indeed but together we will > be able to make a difference and support each other. > > > > For any questions about this initiative please feel free to contact: > communityresources(a)wikimedia.org > > > > Regards, > > On behalf of Community Resources Team, > > Tanveer Hasan > > > ಗುರು, ಏಪ್ರಿ 22, 2021 ರಂದು 02:41 ಅಪರಾಹ್ನ ಸಮಯಕ್ಕೆ ರಂದು Bodhisattwa Mandal < > bodhisattwa.rgkmc(a)gmail.com> ಅವರು ಬರೆದಿದ್ದಾರೆ: > > > Hi, > > > > COVID-19 has hit hard in India again making it the leading epicentre of > > the disease caused by the new mutated strains. The infection and death > > tolls have reached record high and the health system in different parts > of > > the country is on the verge of collapse. > > > > Like other common people, many Wikimedians might have lost their jobs > last > > year. Like last year, this year too, many volunteers have been infected > and > > hospitalised. Some of them have lost their family members, relatives, > > friends and other dear ones. > > > > Volunteer online community is the heart of our movement and every > > dedicated, experienced and long-term volunteers are our most valuable > > asset. It is not at all exaggerating to say that many language Wikimedia > > projects or WikiProjects are dependent completely on one (or two or > > three...) person's persistence to build it as a tall building from > scratch > > and if we lose some of those people, those projects might totally stop > > forever. There are so many fantastic people in the movement who have been > > doing incredible work in their volunteer capacity for such a long time > > (sometimes more than a decade) to make what Wikimedia is today. > > > > I would like to urge people with power and money in the movement to find > a > > way to protect these assets. We not only cannot afford to lose them, but > > also need to proactively protect them. Maybe a small step to provide > > personal or family COVID-19 insurance might help a lot. Maybe sending > money > > to buy COVID-19 vaccines might save some of them. Who knows? > > > > If we can spend millions of dollars for conferences or a couple of > hundred > > thousand dollars to celebrate 20 years of Wikipedia during Wikimania, can > > we not spend a few thousand dollars to protect at least some of the > people > > around the globe to some extent who made it possible to turn Wikipedia > into > > its 20th birthday? > > > > Disclaimer: I had tried to convince the grants team from my personal > > capacity last year when COVID-19 was spreading rapidly in India but was > > denied due to their legal concerns regarding insurance registration as > > well as settlement and liability issues. Few others tried to convince > them > > too but failed. I am reaching out to the community to start a > conversation > > this time and find a way together. > > > > I am sorry for my long mail. I could not help it. > > > > Regards, > > Bodhisattwa > _______________________________________________ > Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and > https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l > New messages to: Wikimedia-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org > Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, > <mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe> > _______________________________________________ Wikimedia-l mailing list, guidelines at: https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Mailing_lists/Guidelines and https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia-l New messages to: Wikimedia-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org Unsubscribe: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikimedia-l, <mailto:wikimedia-l-request@lists.wikimedia.org?subject=unsubscribe>

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WikimediaIndia-l May 2021