Hi Lucy and all,
I have commented on the draft Enforcement Guidelines in my individual
volunteer capacity and would be very happy for WMUK to incorporate my
comments into our affiliate response.
The draft Enforcement Guidelines (and the Universal Code of Conduct) fill a
much-needed gap in Wikimedia community governance. Currently, volunteer
disputes that cannot be resolved amicably at a local project level have no
recourse of escalation except with Stewards or WMF Trust & Safety, whose
only guiding legal text is the Terms of Use. I strongly support their
enactment. That said, I think a few areas of the current draft can be
improved further:
- The mechanisms of escalation from local project dispute resolution to
Wikimedia-wide arbitration, and de-escalation vice versa, ought to be laid
down at least in principle if not in detail. This may involve a hierarchy
of contact points between local projects and global arbitration. This is
not explicitly mentioned in the current draft and as such the guidelines
are vulnerable to double jeopardy or forum shopping.
- The right to be heard during case proceedings (as contrasted to the
right to appeal, after a judgement and sanctions have already been handed
down) should be enshrined into the guidelines.
- I would like to see the proposed arbitration mechanisms claiming
competence (in the legal sense) over cross-wiki content disputes (as
related to UCoC policy section 3.3) that cannot be resolved at a local
project level.
- The guidelines are still in draft but its terminology is already
getting unwieldy, e.g. U4C, EDGR, Code Enforcement Officer. These ought to
be rationalised to minimise misinterpretation in rollout.
Best regards,
Deryck
On Thu, 25 Nov 2021 at 10:09, Lucy Crompton-Reid <
lucy.crompton-reid(a)wikimedia.org.uk> wrote:
Dear all
I have been asked by the Wikimedia Foundation to complete a survey about
the draft Enforcement Guidelines
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Universal_Code_of_Conduct/Enforcement_draft_guidelines_review>
for the Universal Code of Conduct. In particular, they are seeking input
about whether or not it is necessary to hold a final ratification process
with communities and affiliates. The survey also asks us to highlight any
concerns about the draft guidelines.
My understanding is that there will be one survey for each affiliate to
complete, rather than multiple responses. Given that, I want to make sure
that I respond in a way that best reflects the views of UK volunteers and
contributors, not just me and the staff team. I have some questions and
comments about the guidelines, but moreover I do think that there should be
a ratification process involving the people who will be required to
formally consent to the Code (who are listed here
<https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Universal_Code_of_Conduct/Enforcement_draft_guidelines_review#Recommendations_of_UCoC_Consent_amongst_Community_and_Foundation_Staff:>).
If you are at all interested in/looking forward to/concerned by the
introduction of the Universal Code of Conduct, this is an opportunity to
express your views. It would therefore be useful to know your thoughts on
any or all of the following points, ideally by the end of next week (3rd
December):
- To what extent you think that the draft Enforcement Guidelines are
acceptable
- If you have any concerns about the draft guidelines and the
recommended processes
- If you think there should be a final ratification of the guidelines
for communities and affiliates
Please note that these questions are specifically about the
draft Enforcement Guidelines, not the Universal Code of Conduct itself.
Thanks and best wishes
Lucy
--
Lucy Crompton-Reid
Chief Executive
<https://donate.wikimedia.org.uk/>
Wikimedia UK <https://beta.wikimedia.org.uk/> is the national chapter for
the global Wikimedia open knowledge movement.
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