INTERNET CENSORSHIP

In April 2011, the IPS Communication Foundation (IPS)/bianet applied to the Council of State for the removal of the censorship imposed to all internet users in Turkey due to a compulsory internet filter that was initially going into to be enforced on 22 August. The Council of State now dismissed bianet's request to stall the application on the grounds of changes in the regulation.

The controversial filter system was developed within the "Draft Bill on Principles and Procedures for the Safe Use of the Internet" as published by the Council of Information Technologies and Telecommunication (BTK) on 22 February 2011.

"bianet did not lose this case"

Assistant Prof Kerem Altıparmak, member of staff at the Ankara University Faculty of Political Sciences, said in a statement made to bianet that this did not mean that bianet lost its case with this decision of the Council of State:

Altınparmak summarized: "bianet filed a case with the Council of State requesting to halt the execution of the "Draft on Principles and Procedures for the Safe Use of the Internet" that was going to be enforced on 22 August".

"Very probably, the BTK contacted the Council of State as a result of the trial. Then, the BTK made a few amendments in the draft and postponed the application to 22 November".

"The Council of State did not dismiss bianet's request to stall the application because it was considered unjust but because the regulations the request was based on have been changed. In administrative procedures, a trial is being opened once. If the according regulation is being annulled or modified, the case will lack a subject and will be dropped", Altıparmak explained.

"As the result of the case filed by bianet and the reactions of the public, the administration understood that the regulations were contrary to the law and amended them".

The lawyer pointed to the changes in the regulation: The obligation to choose one of the four [filter] profiles has been removed. Furthermore, it was decided that a delegation of ten experts defines the contents of the internet packages. In the previous regulation the BTK could act the way they wanted.

"We will file another trial"

Altınparmak announced to file another case against the amended regulation that is going to be enforced on 22 November. He also said that they were going to claim the cost of the previous trial from the administration.

If this trial should be rejected as well, they will apply to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), the lawyer indicated. He said that the other case was prolonged for six months due to reasons not originating from them. Therefore, Altınparmak continued, a decision could not be given, they could not prove their claims and had to pay the court expenses for six months. (EKN/VK)