Courts Continue Blocking Web Sites

With reference to an individual complaint, an Istanbul court banned access to the informal online news source Eksisozluk (sourtimes.org).

Adnan Oktar, a self-claimed religious sect-leader complained to the court that the online meeting site where members can add and edit headers on anything, contained defamatory expressions about himself.

Eyup 3rd Court of First Instance reviewed the complaint and ordered Turk Telecom -the main Internet service provider in Turkey- to close the site to public access as a preemptive caution.

Furthermore, a poetry site, www.antoloji.com has been also blocked but site moderator Cengiz Ekrem Teymur says they haven't received any notice and don't know on what grounds the action has been taken.

"Disproportional caution"

Eksisozluk lawyer Başak Purut criticized the court order, saying, "This is an disproportional and useless preemption. One can reach the site via various other ways. Furthermore, we're open to any such complaints and remove the defamatory expressions if there's a complaint. There's no need to shut down all of the site".

Purut told reporters that they already removed the articles in question but Turk Telecom carried out the court order a day before it reached them.

He appealed to the order and the ban was lifted today.

This is the second time Eksizoluk faces such action. In February 2006, access to the web site was banned on grounds that it contained articles and comments "promoting drugs and drug use".

Youtube was also a victim

While a draft legislation on cyber crimes is at the National Assembly for enaction, the Turkish judiciary lacks any common approach on such cases.

Experts and rights activists criticize the draft legislation as it would be used to curb dissident views.

Access to another news website, Superpoligon.com had also been restricted following Oktar's complaint.

On another account, the renowned video sharing site Youtube was blocked in March by court order following an alleged video insulting Ataturk, founder of modern Turkey.(EÖ/EÜ)