Freedom on the Net 2022 reported Turkey as 'not free' with a score of 30/100.
Overview
Internet freedom in Turkey has steadily declined over the past decade. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) have enacted several laws that increase censorship and criminalize online speech. During the coverage period, the new Disinformation Law was enacted; it introduces prison sentences for spreading information deemed false, including online. In the run-up to the May 2023 elections, the Disinformation Law was used to silence members of the political opposition as well as critical journalists. Censorship is widespread, and hundreds of websites, online articles, and social media posts have been blocked or removed. Online troll networks frequently amplify progovernment disinformation, and journalists, activists, and social media users continue to face legal charges for their online content.
President Erdoğan and the AKP, which have ruled Turkey since 2002, have become increasingly authoritarian in recent years, consolidating significant power through constitutional changes and by imprisoning opponents and critics. A deepening economic crisis and the May 2023 elections have given the government new incentives to suppress dissent and limit public discourse.
Key Developments, June 1, 2022 - May 31, 2023
Social media and communications platforms were blocked in November 2022 after a bombing in Istanbul, and again in February 2023 following two major earthquakes in the south (see A3 and B1).
Ahead of the May 2023 general elections, authorities removed online content, spread progovernment disinformation, and issued criminal penalties against internet users (see B2, B5, and C3).
The Disinformation Law, which came into force in October 2022, includes provisions that criminalize online speech, restrict online privacy, and increase censorship (see B3, C2, and C6).
Several political opposition websites were subject to cyberattacks during the electoral period (see C8).
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