Russia bans Wikipedia for a few hours (Photo : REUTERS/ILYA NAYMUSHIN/FILES)
Communication watchdogs in Russia ordered Internet providers to ban Wikipedia from being accessed by local users, following a request by authorities to either delete or edit a web page which related to drug use.
According to the Guardian, the ban was swiftly lifted as quickly as it was implemented, but for the few hours that the site was off Russian radars it caused a wave of outcry amongst those in the country's online community amidst reports of internet crackdowns by authorities.
The online chaos began when a provincial court in a small town in Russia's southern territory had requested that the Wikipedia website remove the information contained in a webpage about a form of hashish that authorities felt was harmful.
Internet providers in Russia had to ban access to the website completely in order to prevent users from accessing the information.
The panic among users came to light when many in Moscow discovered that the Russian language page of Wikipedia had been banned by authorities. However, for some users, the website was working with a message appearing on the page informing users as to how to overcome a ban if it had been put into effect.
Russian authorities in a statement explained that the ban was later lifted owing to the fact that the information had been changed. However editors at Wikipedia maintain that the content has not been altered.
According to Time, current legislation has banned websites in Russia from publishing details regarding suicide, drugs, racism and hate. The move has led users to accuse authorities of purposefully censoring access to online information and limiting internet freedoms.
