783 Social Media Accounts Investigated in 1 Week
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The Ministry of Interior has stated on its social media account that between the days of March 19 and March 26, 783 social media accounts have been investigated on charges including "insulting statespersons" and after their owners were identified, a legal action has been initiated against 259 of them.
"Hate speech" is one of the allegations
In the statement issued by the Ministry of Interior, it has been stated:
"An investigation has been conducted into 783 social media accounts which have propagandized and praised a terrorist organization, openly declared that they are in relation with terrorist organizations, incited the public to enmity and hatred, insulted the state officials, targeted the indivisible integrity of the state and the life safety of people and engaged in hate speech. A legal action has been initiated against 259 people who have been identified as the owners of these social media accounts."
The Ministry of Interior previously announced that 845 people who criticized the Afrin operation on social media and participated in critical activities had been taken into custody.
An investigation has also been launched and summary of proceedings has been prepared for seven MPs from the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP).
"The use of Facebook and Twitter in Turkey have both declined"
Human Rights Watch (HRW) issued a statement today (March 27) and stated, "The criminalization of peaceful speech on the internet has a chilling effect on social media use and has led to increased self-censorship." Some of the highlights from the statement are as follows:
"According to a 2017 report by the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism, the use of Facebook and Twitter in Turkey have both declined, possibly due to fears of government surveillance.
"According to transparency reports published by Twitter, Turkey was the world leader in requests to remove accounts or content – so-called "take down" requests – between 2014 and mid-2017.
"According to the nongovernmental organization Freedom House, internet freedom in Turkey has steadily deteriorated, with its Freedom Net Overall Score slipping by 21 points, from 45 in 2011 to 66 in 2017, with the higher score meaning more violations.
"Some of those Human Rights Watch interviewed said that people in Turkey now think twice before posting or reacting to online content criticizing the government." (AS/SD)