New Turkish YouTube ban
p2pnet news | Freedom:- Turkey has again blocked YouTube in response to a video clip deemed to have insulted Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the country’s founding father.
A year ago to the month, Turkey barred YouTube saying some of the posts were insulting to Ataturk. At the time, “According to Turkish media, there has been a ‘virtual war’ between Greek and Turkish users of the site, with both sides posting insulting videos,” stated the BBC.
Insulting Ataturk or ‘Turkishness’ is an offence which can result in a prison sentence.
Then in January a Turkish court once again blocked access because of clips which allegedly insulted Ataturk.
Now, ” A court in the capital of Ankara ordered the ban at the request of a prosecutor who had argued the clip was disrespectful to Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, who died seven decades ago, the Anatolia news agency said,” according to the Associated Press.
It isn’t clear how long the ban will last.
Meanwhile, the bans have, “highlighted the country’s troubled record on free expression which Turkey wants to improve as part of its bid to join the European Union,” says AP, adding:
“Last month, Pakistan briefly blocked access to YouTube because of a video featuring a Dutch lawmaker who has said he plans to release a movie portraying Islam as fascist.
“The move inadvertently cut access for most of the world’s Internet users for up to two hours, highlighting the vulnerability of the Internet.”
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Also See:
video clip – Turkey bans YouTube, March 7, 2007
BBC – Turkish court bans YouTube access, March 7, 2007
blocked access – Turkey censors YouTube – again, January 22, 2008
Associated Press – Turkey Blocks Access to YouTube Again, March 14, 2008
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March 15th, 2008 at 3:55 pm
Turkey should not be in the European Union, they (Europe) are playing with fire. They will realize it, but it will be late by then.
March 15th, 2008 at 4:14 pm
Why doesn’t this story have any links to the “Offensive Video” so we can judge it for ourselves?
March 16th, 2008 at 4:22 am
Can’t the rest of the internet just ban Turkey already?
March 20th, 2008 at 10:08 am
Get a grip ppl this has nothing to do with freedom of expression.. Insulting a nation or a group of people for their nationalities is not expressing your ideas.. It’s a crime anywhere in the world and is called RACISM..
But Racism is todays Facism and the bad thing is most people in the world are racist or judges people for their religions..
Wouldn’t U.S citizens feel offended if there were videos “constantly” posted by a group of people about Abraham Lincoln or George Washington, insulting them and their nation? I’m skipping Bush videos since the whole world is laughing at him already..
It’s a shame for European nations (especially Greece) not to have any reactions against the small groups of people who does these kinds of things but to condemn a nation whose feelings are hurt.
What people should understand is their freedom ENDS in the zone where others’ begin..
P.S for Rerkul: Get a life
April 19th, 2008 at 9:33 pm
So by your description, this so called “offensive video” insulted Turkish people as a nation, for being Turkish, and insulted several Turkish historical figures?
Insulting a race of people is called Prejudice.
Racism is the act of treating a group of people differently than another group.
Why do so many people misuse the term Racism?