The latest effort by Turkey Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to expand his control over media and silence dissent came at the expense of free speech in the country. A Wall Street Journal report said the parliament of Turkey recently passed a new law that will give authorities control to shutter websites without a court order. Critics has slammed this move, curtailing free speech and the intrusion of personal freedoms, WSJ said.
The passing of the controversial new ruling that would curb free speech in the country was led by AKP, the governing Justice and Development Party, WSJ said. The measure was approved late Wednesday and is awaiting the signature of President Abdullah Gül for the measure to take effect.
WSJ said the new measure will allow the curreny presidency of Telecommunication and Communication, or TIB, to hinder access of websites within four hours of receipt of complaints regarding violations in privacy. The web hosts of the state of Turkey will also be storing all traffice information up to two years, according to the measure. WSJ said the new measure has been inserted as part of a legislation package.
Transport, Maritime Affairs and Communications Minister Lutfi Elvan believed that the banning of websites ultimately infringe the personal rights as the new measure will not protect personal privacy in a timely manner by circumventing lengthy court procedures, which was always a necessity. He said on Thursday, "The approach that the Internet is being banned, is being censored is wrong,"
The European Union is not happy about the decision of the parliament of Turkey to pass the measure. spokesman for European Commissioner for Enlargement Stefan Füle, Peter Stano, said, "The Turkish public deserves more information and more transparency, not more restrictions. The law in the current form. introduces several restrictions to the freedom of expression. The law needs to be revised in line with European standards."
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