Internet Blocking Protests in Turkey (Photo : www.dailymail.co.uk)
Turkey became the headlines last year for temporarily blocking Twitter and YouTube. Today, both social media are unblocked militants are using it to expressing another set of concerns about freedom to use the internet. It is not a surprise that any move that is made to standardize the internet attracts protests in Turkey. Several hashtags recently have been attacks to the government in lieu to this.
A bill has been passed by the parliament and which will be implemented and will give the Turkish government ministers the power to demand any website material that is a threat to public health and national security, or liable to create public disorders or crime, will be pulled down or blocked from the net in four hours. Owners of such sites will be fine or be imprisoned if would not comply, according to EIN News Desk.
The Gezi Park protests in 2013, a big event organized on social media, where participated by many. Today, this population is not happy with regard to the government's defense of the law. The transparency report of Twitter shows a 90% of tweets pulled down that were considered in violation of the Turkish government's bill.
Turkey has had a long history of media constraint, and is currently on the 154th spot out of 180 countries in the Reporters Without Borders Press Freedom Index.
Director of the DeWitt Wallace Center for Media and Democracy, Philip Bennett explains that Turkey is turning into the advocate for non-liberal democracies magnifying their assault on a free press, BBC News reported.
