News Scan – April 5th: Erdoğan slams high court’s pro-freedom ruling on Twitter

Erdoğan slams high court’s pro-freedom ruling on Twitter

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan who spoke to journalists on Friday morning at Atatürk International Airport prior to leaving for Baku, Azerbaijan harshly criticized a ruling by the Constitutional Court that found Turkey’s block on Twitter to be a violation of free speech, saying that the court acted unpatriotically.

The Constitutional Court ordered access to be restored on Wednesday, calling the two-week ban a violation of the right to free expression. The decision was published in the Official Gazette early Thursday and the Ankara Bar Association said it had been finalized and was to be put into effect immediately. However, the Telecommunications Directorate (TİB) waited until early Thursday evening to lift the ban, causing many to suspect that the government might flout the ruling altogether. The prime minister noted on Friday that the government had to obey the high court’s ruling; however, he added, “But I don’t have to respect it. I do not respect this decision.” He said the Constitutional Court should have overturned the application without hearing it, arguing that the ban should have been challenged in the lower courts first. An administrative court in Ankara had made a ruling against the block prior to the March 30 elections.

Twitter was banned in Turkey after Erdoğan expressed his dislike of the microblogging site on March 21. He accused the website of ignoring Turkish court rulings ordering the deletion of several accounts, but it is widely believed that the block was in response to graft allegations that were posted and shared which implicated the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government. Several Twitter users posted audio recordings related to an investigation into government corruption that became public with police raids and detentions made on Dec. 17, 2013.

TODAYS ZAMAN

Countdown begins for Turkey’s first Apple store

Turkey’s first Apple store will soon open its doors to the public in Zorlu Center, located in Gayrettepe, Istanbul. With its eye-catchy cubic glass ceiling architecture, the store has already been introduced to members of the press prior to the public opening.

Steve Cano, Apple Vice President of Stores Worldwide, said the Apple Store in Zorlu Center is the company’s first store in Turkey and added, “Istanbul is the gateway between Asia and Europe, and is also home to people who are keen on technology. This store is the 424th within our global store chain, which spans 15 different countries. We are excited to be in Istanbul and Turkey.” Cano stated that Apple stores are also café-style venues, which globally attract 1 million people every day.

According to Cano, the 100 employees in the Istanbul store have undergone a year of training on the products in anticipation of the opening. Cano said, “There are a total of 20 Turkish executives working at Apple stores around the world, and we have benefitted from their experiences for this store.”

INVEST.GOV.TR

U.S. urges Ankara to unblock YouTube, too

The United States has welcomed the implementation of the Constitutional Court decision ordering to unblock the access to Twitter and urged the Turkish government to open YouTube as well for the Turkish citizens. “We welcome the decision, and support the freedom of expression in Turkey. We also know that the Turkish government implemented the ruling yesterday to unblock the Twitter,” said U.S. Department of State Deputy Spokesperson Marie Harf during the daily press briefing on April 4.

“Also we are following an Ankara court decision for government shutdown access the YouTube. Obviously we continue to urge the government to open also YouTube,” Harf continued.

Turkish authorities had blocked access to Twitter on March 20, just 10 days before the local elections. Hours before the ban, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan vowed to close down the social media platform. Turkey finally unblocked Twitter on April 3, a full 24 hours after the Constitutional Court ruled that the ban was a violation of free speech.

YouTube was also blocked on March 27 by Turkey’s Telecommunications Authority (TİB) without a court decision. The ban on the popular video-sharing website continues, although a local court ordered authorities to unblock it on April 4.

HURRIYET DAILY NEWS

Turkey admits Reyhanli was attacked by al-Qaeda (Tülin Daloğlu)

On May 11, 2013, Reyhanli, a Turkish town on the border with Syria, was attacked with twin car bombs, leaving behind an official toll of 52 deaths and 146 injuries.

But the mystery of who attacked Reyhanli, marking the worst terrorist attack this country has ever seen, remained controversial. Here is why: On May 25, 2013, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused the Syrian regime of being behind this attack. Also, referring to a visit by a group of main opposition Republican People’s Party deputies to a Damascus meeting with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Erdogan said in an accusatory tone, “We have documents in our hands that clearly prove that those who took the CHP members to Assad are those who were directly involved in the Reyhanli attack.”

The indictment about this attack also pinpointed that THKP/C Acilciler (Urgency Group, a splinter faction of the Turkish People’s Liberation Party/Front which has had no known activity for the past two decades at least], which supposedly has direct connection to the Syrian intelligence service Al-Mukhabarat, carried out this attack. The Reyhanli indictment contends Mihrac Ural, the leader of the Acilciler, organized the attack with Syrian intelligence. They were initially planning to carry out this attack in the capital, Ankara, roughly 700 kilometers [434 miles] from this border area. The trial is still pending.

Erdogan also talked about the late May-early June Gezi Park protests as a “continuation of Reyhanli.” The prime minister so far has not publicly blamed anyone other than the Syrian regime to be behind this attack.

Read more: http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2014/04/reyhanli-qaeda-bombing-attack-admits.html#ixzz2y0ztk4sV