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Requests for comment/Blocked without breaking any rule

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The following request for comments is closed. Closing, as this RFC has quickly gone stale and there is no need for multiple open requests about a single wiki's governance. --MF-W 20:44, 15 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]


Hello,

I am an active editor in the Hebrew Wikipedia since December 2021 (sofiblum). A bureaucrat of the Hebrew Wikipedia (גארפילד) blocked me two weeks ago from editing in the article namespace with the explanation that I edit current events topics, and demanded that I undergo mandatory mentorship to be able to return and edit (here) .

This block was made despite the following facts:

  1. There is no rule in the Hebrew Wikipedia prohibiting editing current events.
  2. The bureaucrats' authority does not include content matters.
  3. Editing on current events topics continues to be carried out constantly by other editors, who face no sanctions (Here is a list of a few examples).
  4. The Hebrew Wikipedia community members (including myself) have repeatedly raised requests and ideas for establishing a uniform set of rules for editing current events, but these requests have not been addressed by the bureaucrats.
  5. The edits I make on current events articles are phrased neutrally, based on reliable sources, and are mostly accepted by the community. The day before I was blocked the Hebrew Wikimedia team gave me a "gold medal" on my talk page in recognition of my "ongoing and significant contribution to Hebrew Wikipedia", for "improving hundreds of significant articles" and for "sensitive and polite participation in talk pages" (here)

Ten days after the block from the article namespace, the bureaucrat blocked me from the other namespaces of Wikipedia as well. His argument was that 10 days have passed since the mentorship was imposed on me and I haven't found a mentor yet. This extensive block was imposed on me unlike other editors who were also required to undergo mandatory mentorship but were not blocked from additional namespaces even after several months (for example, the user Yts24).

The decision of the bureaucrats to block me in the first place and then to extend the block raises serious questions about the motives/biases behind it (I am a woman and I am liberal, as stated on my user page).

Since my activity as an editor has always been within the project's rules, it is unclear to me (and to many other editors) what is the purpose of a mandatory mentorship in this case. It seems its purpose is to police me so that I do not make edits on current events (while other editors continue to do so). Therefore I see no use in accepting this sanction. I have tried explaining all of the above to the bureaucrats (גארפילד and ביקורת) but they are entrenching themselves in their position.

I am appealing to you with a request to assist in removing my arbitrary and discriminatory block.

I regret the processes occurring these days in the Hebrew Wikipedia and regret the hard work done by the Hebrew Wikimedia Foundation to integrate new editors, especially new female editors, into the project, work that is largely wasted due to these processes Sofiblum (talk) 21:05, 2 July 2024 (UTC)[reply]

I suggest any commentaries on this matter go into the first/oldest request for comment made, that being Requests for comment/Abuse of power by bureaucrats in the Hebrew Wikipedia. Please note that multiple editors from hewiki also made their own inputs on Requests for comment/Unjustified block in the Hebrew Wikipedia, Requests for comment/blocked and ignored by the bureaucrats in Hebrew Wiki, Requests for comment/Banned without any explanation, and Requests for comment/Abuse of power by bureaucrats in the Hebrew Wikipedia. Note that attacking others is not acceptable. Best, A09|(pogovor) 18:32, 3 July 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Thank you for your comment. Please note that this block is different then the other requests dealing with blocks on the Hebrew Wikipedia which you mentioned, since it is not within the W:HE:ויקיפדיה:פרשת הטיית הצבעות ודיונים 2024 Sofiblum (talk) 19:54, 3 July 2024 (UTC)[reply]
I agree. A distinction must be made between the two cases. The previous ones are indeed related to each other, but this is different from them because it is not part of "he:ויקיפדיה:פרשת הטיית הצבעות ודיונים 2024". Neriah - 💬 - 06:54, 16 July 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Please disregard my comment above then. Best, A09|(pogovor) 09:05, 16 July 2024 (UTC)[reply]
A week ago, I posted on my talk page an appeal to bureaucrats to reconsider my block and the requirement for mandatory mentorship. I pointed out the injustice done to me by attaching to the appeal a list of edits on current events that continue to be made in Hebrew Wikipedia since I was blocked for this very reason. Some of the edits on the list were not based on any reliable source, some were based on fake reports, and one even referred to an event that had not yet occurred, but the editors who made them were not required to undergo mandatory mentorship or receive any other sanction. The bureaucrats did not respond to my appeal. I would appreciate your intervention to remove my discriminatory block.Sofiblum (talk) 09:50, 25 August 2024 (UTC)[reply]