Internet Censorship in Turkey
Turkish legislators have passed a bill giving the right to ban websites within 4 hours upon a prime minster and/or minsters request, without a court order. This comes to a shock to the world of journalism and the people who stand for their right of freedom of speech. According to BGN News,
"The new provision allows for the removal of any content that endangers an individual’s right to life and property, is deemed a threat to national security or public order, incites criminal activity or is a risk to public health. The TİB will restrict access to website within 4 hours of the decision by the ministers, and can also demand domain or service providers submit a user’s information to help locate suspects, with fines as high as TRY 500,000 (USD 190,000) for those who don’t comply."
Under this new law any website can be blocked up to 24 hours. The laws comes out of fear that social media sites will become more of a risk to the public. Others see it as a way to control criticism in the upcoming elections for Turkey. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) have shown their concern and are fighting back by pressuring Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to decline the new law censoring the internet. The Committee to Protect Journalist made their plea, stating,
""Under this legislation, national security and the public order are a pretext for Internet censorship in Turkey," CPJ Europe and Central Asia Program Coordinator Nina Ognianova said. "We call on President Erdoğan to reject this bill and for Turkish lawmakers to tolerate the flow of news and commentary online, as befits a modern democracy.""
Just 6 months ago, in September, the Parliament passed a bill comparable to the likes of this new bill, but it was overturned by the Constitutional Court. Turkey higher-ups are looking to have total control over the internet, making Turkey's freedom of speech more and more distant.
