[WikiEN-l] PR firm accused of whitewashing Wikipedia article on Maldives

[Keith Old]

Minivan News, an independent article on the Maldives, has published
accusations that a PR company whitewashed an article on the Maldives.
"A data-mining tool called WikiScanner <http://wikiscanner.virgil.gr/> has
purportedly revealed PR firm Hill & Knowlton deleted a number of statements
critical of the former government while they were employed by ex-President
Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.

According to the online tool, edits on the Wikipedia entry, *Politics of the
Maldives <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politics_of_the_Maldives>*, included
the removal of the
following*passage<http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?diff=prev&oldid=15778660>
*:

“President Gayoom has systematically suppressed any and all political
activity in the Maldives. His use of election rigging and imprisonment of
political activists have all ensured that he went unchallenged for over 26
years in office.

“President Gayoom routinely uses torture, propaganda, and censorship as a
means to cling on to political power.

“Independent news media is non-existent. The three running dailies are
controlled by cabinet ministers of President Gayoom.”

The company further moderated language on the absence of political parties
in the Maldives, writing instead: “The Maldivian political system was based
around the election of individuals, rather than the more common system of
elections according to party platform.”
(...)

Critics of the former regime allege Hill & Knowlton was hired by
ex-President Gayoom’s government to help him improve the country’s image
following growing civil unrest and allegations of human rights abuses.

But speaking to Minivan News today, Mohamed Hussein Shareef (Mundhu),
spokesperson for Gayoom, said the company was recruited in early 2004, not
to whitewash the government’s activities but to teach officials how to
interface with the international media and develop a communications
strategy.

On the changes made to Wikipedia, he said he did not believe them to be
illegitimate due to the questionable authority of the online encyclopedia,
which can be edited by anyone.

“Wikipedia is a point of view or an opinion. The MDP (Maldivian Democratic
Party) used to play with the Wikipedia page on Gayoom all the time,” he
said. “Just as someone has the right to call our government a human rights
abusing government, as a government we had the right to say, no we’re not.”

(More in article)

Regards


Keith