Skip to main content

Court rules Turkey violated rights by blocking Wikipedia

Wikipedia, Russia

Turkey’s highest court on Thursday ruled in favor of Wikipedia, saying the Turkish government’s two-year ban on the online encyclopedia constitutes a violation of freedom of expression, the state-run news agency reported.

Turkey blocked Wikipedia in April 2017, accusing it of being part of a “smear campaign” against the country, after the website refused to remove content that allegedly portrayed Turkey as supporting the Islamic State group and other terrorist organizations.

ALSO READ: At least 15 dead after plane carrying 98 people crashes in Kazakhstan

Access to Wikipedia and all its language editions was blocked under a law that allows the government to ban websites it deems pose a national security threat.

Wikipedia declined to remove content from the community-generated site, citing its opposition to censorship. It petitioned the Constitutional Court in May 2017 after talks with Turkish officials and a challenge in lower courts failed.

ALSO READ: India tightens security for protests after Friday prayers

The Anadolu Agency reported that the Constitutional Court decided the ban amounted to a violation of freedom of expression. The justices voted 10-6 in favor of Wikipedia, the agency said.

There was no immediate comment from the government and it was not immediately clear when access to the website would be restored.

Many Turks have found ways to circumvent the ban on Wikipedia and other blocked websites.

Source: New York Post

Vanguard News

The post Court rules Turkey violated rights by blocking Wikipedia appeared first on Vanguard News.


https://ift.tt/34VJiaw by Temisan Amoye via Vanguard News Albert Einstein Fools of Fortune

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

How to jump-start Nigeria economy post-COVID-19 Pandemic

Nwali Tochukwu Watching with consternation the fall out of events, actions, and inactions of our Nigerian leaders on mitigating the negative impact of COVID-19 Pandemic disruptions on our social and economic lives. As a young dynamic business and entrepreneurship writer, and author cum small business owner, what came into my mind as we navigate the storms of COVID-19, was a common English phrase Adages, Proverbs, first recorded in Fuller’s Gnomologia, 1732: ‘A stitch in time saves nine’ which was translated to literally, solve the problems right now! Why procrastinating? If we, as a nation wants to break away from past mistakes, and present mistakes, we should hold the bull by the horn right now. And avoid the roads of political expediency. That is exactly what the stitch in time simply stood for. Promptly address issues posed by Coronavirus. By quickly sewing up of a small hole or tear in a piece of material, so saving the need for more stitching at a later date when the whole ha...

Where is Aguleri Located?

Aguleri is a prominent town often associated with the mighty river called Omabala wgiyflows through it. It is home to a lot of great men and women of Anambra Stare - notably Willie Obiano. History had it that it was the cradle of Igbo people established by Eri, son of Had, son of Jacob (you got to read your Bible babe). Where is Aguleri located? It can be foueat the north eastern part of Nigeria. They share boundaries with Kano, Umueri, Anam and Nando httpss://twitter.com/share https://google.com https://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/google.com https://www.quantcast.com/google.com https://sharedcount.com/?url=https://google.com https://www.similarsites.com/site/google.com https://facebook.com https://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/facebook.com https://www.quantcast.com/facebook.com https://sharedcount.com/?url=https://facebook.com https://www.similarsites.com/site/facebook.com https://youtube.com https://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/youtube.com https://www.quantcast.com/youtube.com ...

Forum of retired Heads of Service, Permanent Secretaries donate N500,000 to Edo COVID-19 fund

Urges residents to complement govt’s efforts to check spread The Edo Forum of Retired Heads of Service and Permanent Secretaries has donated N500,000 to boost the Edo State Government’s response to check the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in the state. Chairman of the forum, Mallam Ikhelowa Atalasa Hanson, who made the presentation at Government House, Benin City, said the donation will complement the state government’s effort in deploying resources to fight against the spread of the virus. Ikhelowa said as a body, the retired heads of service and permanent secretaries tasked themselves to support the state government’s unalloyed commitment to protecting Edo people. READ ALSO:  COVID-19: Edo records 60 new cases as govt calls for caution On his part, Vice Chairman of the forum, Sir Xerxes Usiobaifo urged residents in the state to comply with all regulations from Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and the state government, noting that COVID-19 is real. He ur...