China and Africa
I'm also worried about the non-prioritization of growth in China. The wording of not to invest more to "grow usage of Wikipedia in China" is very broad too. The obstacles to growth in China are not just censorship, and challenging censorship is not the only thing Wikimedia should or can do in China in the next five years. If Wikimedia does not do more (or brainstorming more on what to do) in China, it's almost guaranteed that in five years, Wikimedia will lose China to rapidly maturing competitors.
It's clear that censorship poses a unique hindrance to growth in China, and Wikimedia has not encountered such a difficult problem in any other countries, and so far no corporations/organizations have been able to overcome this problem. It is also out of question to set up any uncensored server inside China (unless something big happens). But, censorship and governmental favoritism to other competitors are not the only factors to blame. Other aspects such as weakening local communities, scarce of public and promotional activities, inferior search engine results (including at Google), poor coverage on locally interested topics, cultural differences, lack of local partners/facilitators, etc, contribute greatly to the unsatisfactory development of Wikimedia in China and need attention and actions without delay.
Wikipedia has been unblocked since the 2008 Olympics and is no longer targeted specifically by the censorship system (of course, the general filtration/firewall on all foreign websites continues and fortifies every day). Now, anyone in China can openly use Wikipedia, talk about Wikipedia, and promote Wikipedia without being singled out or punished by censors. Lots of work can be done and achieved in China by Wikimedia and/or its designees without clashing with or submitting to the censorship.
Most importantly, China is different with Africa and other regions where Wikimedia is underdeveloped: in China, the IT infrastructure is developed and the market is vibrant, indeed, with fierce competition. In a garden where nothing has really started growing, one can wait until the climate is more temperate or friendly to enter and plant crops. However, in a garden where the soil is rich and weeds are expanding, one has no time to waste but to plant more crops and defend actively, even when it's still raining or blowing hard. If Wikimedia quits or stops trying more in China, it is almost guaranteed that in five years Wikimedia will lose the market to competitors and can no longer stands itself as a global project for all.
The editor and promoter communities in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and other places are probably growing and helping the growth of Chinese Wikipedia, but communities in mainland China are weakening and probably declining. Relying solely on the local communities without leadership or help from Wikimedia to achieve growth in mainland China is just unimaginable.
In regards to donors' intentions and the prudential use of their money, I want to say that I donated in hope that Wikipedia will gather more knowledge and provide better service to all, including knowledge from and service to the people in China. I believe that many donors have similar ideas and definitely do not want to see Wikimedia missing the last chance and being replaced by competitors in China.
Therefore, please reconsider the proposal and include priorities to grow (at least sustain) in China. --R.O.C 06:40, 21 January 2010 (UTC)