Turkey Blocks Content on Twitter Ahead of Election
Twitter has blocked certain content in Turkey, following a request from the government just prior to parliamentary and presidential elections held on Sunday. The social media company confirmed the move with several tweets in both English and Turkish, but provided no details regarding the content or its duration. Under its corporate user account for global government affairs, Twitter stated that the blocking was in response to Turkish law, and was intended to continue providing the platform to the Turkish people. Users affected by the blocking will be informed and it will only apply within Turkey.
Controversy Surrounds Turkey’s Election Restrictions
The move has ignited speculation by some that the government is attempting to censor opposition voices during the election process. Elon Musk was also drawn into the debate when US journalist Matthew Yglesias claimed that the ban had been initiated by the Turkish government, adding that Musk had complied with the request. Musk responded by highlighting Twitter’s choice to either block certain content or risk being shut down altogether in Turkey. He also promised to reveal the government’s request for the blocking, however no details have yet been released.
Turkey has previously penalised Twitter for violating social media laws, including a recent ban on advertising, and penalties that permit bandwidth throttling or even total blocking of domains. The government is also empowered to require countermeasures against online content through a law aiming to combat internet crime. During the course of the recent earthquake in February, Turkey repeatedly blocked access to social media.
