While historical and geopolitical ambitions sit at the heart of the war in Ukraine, cynical disinformation and denial of knowledge allowed it to happen and now fuel its momentum.
When used responsibly, the internet should provide mechanisms to counter these evils. In Russia, however, the state has decided that only its narrative is correct and anyone stating otherwise faces website blocking and up to 15 years in prison.
Academics and Researchers – A Beacon of Hope
Just after the invasion began in February, huge numbers of Russian academics showed real bravery by blaming Russia for the bloodshed. In blatant defiance of the government, they openly described the ‘Special Operation’ as a war.
“There is no rational justification for this war. It is clear that Ukraine does not pose a threat to the security of our country. The war against her is unfair and frankly senseless,” they wrote in an open letter warning of the damage that lay ahead.
“Having unleashed the war, Russia doomed itself to international isolation, to the position of a pariah country. This means that we, scientists, will no longer be able to do our job normally: after all, conducting scientific research is unthinkable without full cooperation with colleagues from other countries.”
More than 8,000 scientists were able to sign the letter before it was disappeared by the government but the predictions it contained are already coming true. The lack of international cooperation will manifest itself in many ways but not even the scientists could have predicted the events of late last week.
Major Academic Publishers End Sales in Russia
In line with other Western entities choosing to boycott Russia, 15 major companies with a virtual monopoly on scientific publishing decided that enough is enough. Companies including Elsevier, Springer Nature and American Chemical society denounced the war and announced the withdrawal of their services from Russia.
“We have taken the unprecedented step of suspending sales and marketing of products and services to research organizations in Russia and Belarus. We join other organizations globally that are acting to bring about an end to this aggression and to restore peace,” they wrote.
“We remain committed to the ideals of science and scholarship as a global community. Our actions are not targeted at Russian researchers, but rather at research organizations in Russia and Belarus.”
The publishers say they are honoring existing contracts but after that, new access to scientific research will be suspended. Even that is sugar-coating the reality.
Subscriptions to foreign scientific journals (97.5% of the Russian market) are bought by a central source, the Russian Foundation for Basic Research (RFBR). It spends almost $44 million a year for 1,200 scientific and educational organizations to access 30 foreign publisher platforms. The publishers put their ban in place before it could renew its licenses.
This raises the prospect that scientists, a rare group of well-informed citizens who can think critically and have the bravery to speak out, will soon become academically isolated. If they haven’t left the country already, of course.
Given their thirst for revenue the publishers will have considered the financial implications of their withdrawal. On the other hand they have shown that scientific knowledge can be turned off like a tap when control is so centralized. There is an antidote – but the publishers are always doing their best to destroy it.
Sci-Hub Shows Why It Needs to Exist
Every day millions of people pirate movies, TV shows and music but research suggests that the overwhelming majority not engaged in the activity tend to find it morally unacceptable. Interestingly, access to research papers by infringing means receives much greater support, with many students, academics and researchers publicly supporting it. Excessive costs and restrictions are regularly cited, especially in countries with adverse economic conditions.
All around the world, the infamous Sci-Hub solves all of these problems. Its mission is to provide open access to all available scientific knowledge for free, but that runs counter to the financial goals of the publishers. However, since the publishers have decided to suspend sales in Russia, the use of Sci-Hub by those who are now prevented from paying will have a limited financial effect on the publishers.
There are other things to consider, of course. It’s unclear whether the publishers are trying to directly affect Russia’s ability to wage war through lack of information (many research and education facilities are state-owned) or whether they feel that simply selling into the country is morally unacceptable right now. Either way, Sci-Hub has a clear mission to spread knowledge and it is unlikely to deviate from that now.
The other issue is that Sci-Hub isn’t readily accessible in Russia anymore and that’s a direct result of action by Springer Nature, one of the companies now boycotting Russia.
In a complaint filed at the Moscow City Court, Springer claimed that Sci-Hub offered three studies covering heart and brain health without obtaining an appropriate license. After being labeled a repeat infringer, Sci-Hub is now permanently blocked by local ISPs.
So, when Sci-Hub gets a new domain, telecoms watchdog Roscomnadzor (which is currently blocking any sites in Russia that don’t publish official propaganda regarding the war) blocks those domains and orders Google to remove them from search results.
In practical terms, the censorship arm of Russia’s own government is now directly harming the country’s scientific community, or at least what’s left of it.
While blocking measures are easily circumvented using a VPN, it’s extremely clear that restricting access to knowledge is destructive. Russia needs to be pressured like never before (and by any means) but long term, only free access to accurate information and knowledge will bring about change.
An entire nation being lied to on a daily basis provided the justification for this war. Only the opposite will bring about meaningful and lasting peace.
The publishers suspending their sales activities are as follows:
ACS Publications
Apple Academic Press
Brill
Cambridge University Press & Assessment
De Gruyter
Elsevier
Emerald Publishing
Future Science Group
IOP Publishing
Karger Publishers
Springer Nature
The Geological Society
The Institution of Engineering and Technology
Thieme Group
Wolters Kluwer
