A few weeks ago, Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Erdogan being a fierce opponent of the internet delivered another blow to Turkish users of the World Wide Web. Mr. Erdogan had vowed to "wipe out" Twitter after users spread corruption allegations involving him and his son, which he denied. Following the Twitter ban, the government had also banned access to YouTube. The prime minister has lashed out at the popular video hosting, accusing "plotters" of “espionage and immorality”. Obviously, the policymaker believes that he and his son can afford to embezzle several hundred million euros. However, posting recordings of corruption evidence should be considered immoral. Apart from family matters, a video on YouTube came in view of numerous users. The video reveals top officials discussing how to stage an undercover attack inside Syria. Importantly, the recorded policymaker’s talk with his son about illegal trafficking of huge cash as well as the transcript of the leaked security meeting on the intervention in Syria’s clashes were considered to be the cause for banning the website within Turkey. Taking advantage of his job title, the prime minister put pressure on Turkey’s telecommunication department that issued the resolution or the ban on access to the website. However, the court in Ankara ordered the country's telecommunication authorities to lift the two-week-old ban as it was a gross breach of freedom of expression guaranteed by the Constitution. Users across the country had found many ways of circumventing the prohibitions, which were widely criticized and ridiculed. The only restriction which the judge left without any changes is locked access to 15 video and audio recordings including the notorious security meeting of the government. Prime Minister Recep Erdogan gave feedback that he does not respect the court’s ruling. The next target to hit by Mr. Erdogan is Facebook which has been on the blacklist of the policymaker for a long time. Meanwhile, Turkish internet users have to wait for the presidential election as it will determine not only the future of the country, but apparently the internet fate in Turkey.
