An Ankara administrative court has issued a stay of execution on an executive decision adopted by Turkey’s telecommunication’s authority (TİB) to block access to Twitter, as the ban entered its sixth day on March 26.
The government had blocked access to the social media network late March 21, hours after Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğanvowed “to wipe out Twitter,” sparking global outcry.
A number of complaints were filed to courts last week to revoke the ban following the controversial move. The Union of Turkish Bar Associations (TBB), the Ankara Bar Associations, and Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) Deputy Parliamentary Group Chair Oktay Vural were among those applying to the administrative court to invalidate the ban.
The TİB has a right to object to the ruling, but access should be reopened before a second decision is made, legal experts consulted by daily Hürriyet said.
"We will implement the court's decision," Deputy Prime Minister Bülent Arınç told reporters in his first remarks following the ruling.
Meanwhile, the Constitutional Court has reviewed individual applications regarding the ban on March 26, announcing that a separate ruling is not required at this moment as the administrative court in Ankara already issued a stay of execution.
The decision comes after Erdoğan indicated the possibility that the ban could be extended to other popular social websites like YouTube and Facebook.
The government had accused Twitter of “indifference” over Turkish court decisions to withdraw content considered as violating the right of privacy.
Twitter quickly started talks with the Turkish government through a lawyer, reassuring users in the country that the service would return soon and the network would ensure protection of their privacy.
Erdoğan said during a live TV broadcast March 26 that Twitter had agreed to remove "one or two" pieces of content from the social media platform, but this was not enough. There are "approximately 700 pieces of content" that his government has demanded be removed, he added.
Source/Fuente: http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/ankara-court-grants-stay-of-execution-f...
