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Archive for March, 2021|Monthly archive page

Tell us something we don’t know: The State Department of the United States report- “Freedoms restricted, rule of law compromised in Turkey”

In Uncategorized on March 31, 2021 at 17:33

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US report: Freedoms restricted, rule of law compromised in Turkey

Bianet :: English

The State Department of the United States (US) has released its 2020 Country Report on Human Rights Practices in Turkey.

US Department of State has released its 2020 country report on human rights practices in Turkey, listing a series of violations of rights including “torture”, “limited steps to investigate and penalize members of security forces” and “violence against minorities.

IPI to European Union: Prioritize press freedom in Turkey

Bianet :: English
International Press Institute has addressed an open letter to the President of the European Council ahead of EU leaders’ meeting this week and called on the European Council to prioritize press freedom in Turkey.

WOMEN IN POLITICS 2021: Turkey 129th out of 188 countries in women’s parliamentary representation

Bianet :: English
UN Women has released a map on women’s representation in parliaments, ministerial positions and at the highest levels of executive power.
Top Turkish diplomat Çavuşoğlu meets US counterpart Blinken

Hurriyet Daily News
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu on March 23 separately met with his French and U.K. counterparts in Brussels to discuss regional issues.

Turkey withdraws from Istanbul Convention, citing ‘normalization of homossexuality’

Global Voices Online by Arzu Geybullayeva

The convention pledges to eliminate domestic violence and promote gender equality

 

Photo by European Parliament, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

On March 20, Turkey announced it will withdraw from the Istanbul Convention over what it calls the treaty’s “normalization of homosexuality.”

The Istanbul Convention is a legally-binding human rights treaty of the Council of Europe pledging to prevent, prosecute and eliminate domestic violence and promote gender equality. It was open to signature in 2011 and has been signed by 45 states.

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Macron claims Ankara interference in polls

Hurriyet Daily News
French President Emmanuel Macron claimed that Turkey was “attempting to interfere” in his country’s next presidential election in 2022 while also stressing that Paris must work with Ankara.

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Turkey may have lost her grasp both on the pandemic and the currency values. 1 USD =8.27 TRY

In Uncategorized on March 30, 2021 at 12:23

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I am in turmoil with my own personal issues and Turkey is also in turmoil, it seems.

Turkey tightens coronavirus measures as cases on the increase countrywide

Bianet :: English
President Erdoğan announced new measures as the Health Ministry published the new risk map.

Weekend-curfew declared in 58 cities in Turkey | Ahval

The Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan declared a two-day curfew in red-categorized cities
HRW slams Erdoğan for ‘unprecedentedly’ dismantling human rights protections and democratic norms

Diken

The government took further dangerous measures over the past week to undermine the rule of law and target perceived critics and political opponents, HRW said.

MURAT BAYRAM IN DİYARBAKIR: Major issue on Newroz agenda: Closure case against HDP

Bianet :: English
The message given from Newroz celebrations in Turkey’s Kurdish-majority Diyarbakır province: “Turkey is heading towards a one-man regime; the closure of the HDP means that all political groups will lose political ground.”

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After years of anti-Sisi rhetoric, Turkey gets in touch with Egypt and orders Muslim Brotherhood TV channels to keep a low profile…

In Uncategorized on March 26, 2021 at 18:13

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No one can be trusted in international relations permanently but the Erdoğan regime proves once again one should not rely on him at all.  I continue to hear that those Brotherhood exiles in Turkey are ordered to keep a low profile. Let’s see next, I would not be surprised if they are sent back to Egypt…

Turkey orders Muslim Brotherhood TV channels to halt anti-Egypt rhetoric | Ahval

Turkey has ordered Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated television channels based in Istanbul to halt…

EU halts plans to blacklist Turkey oil execs

AL JAZEERA ENGLISH (IN DEPTH)
Brussels has frozen plans to sanction senior executives at Turkish Petroleum Corp, four diplomats told Reuters news.

Turkey Asks Istanbul-based Egyptian Opposition to Tone Down Criticism, TV Network Owner Says

Turkey Asks Istanbul-based Egyptian Opposition to Tone Down Criticism, TV Network Owner Says. Egypt’s information minister calls the move ‘good …

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In internet censorship, what is Turkey’s model? Russia or China?

In Uncategorized on March 22, 2021 at 16:43

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I have recently read The Red Web. It is a sad story of how Putin gradually controlled internet communications within Russia. The gradual process reminded what we have encountered back in Turkey. In Turkish autocrats’ discourse, Turkey aims to create a China-like situation but I believe more and more that they had just followed Putin’s playbook. Even the latest development of Russia slowing down Twitter is a tactic Turkey would execute if Twitter did not appoint a representative.

Russia slows down Twitter over ‘banned content’

BBC News | Europe | World Edition
The US company is accused of failing to remove 3,000 posts relating to suicide, drugs and pornography.

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Dark Saturday is followed by a Black Monday as Turkish Lira falls 14% #dolar

In Uncategorized on March 22, 2021 at 10:03

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Turkish lira slides after firing of Central Bank head

Bianet :: English
The Central Bank governor has been replaced with a pro-government economist advocating lower interest rates.

Turkish lira falls 14% after bank governor sacked

BBC News | Europe | World Edition
The outgoing central bank chief is the third exit in under two years under Turkey’s President Erdogan.

Turkish lira plunges after Erdogan sacks central bank chief

AL JAZEERA ENGLISH (IN DEPTH)
Sacked governor Agbal had raised interest rates to rein in inflation; analysts fear new chief may reverse rate hikes.

Some more news from the Dark Saturday as this man-made crisis grows:

The White House – Mar 21, 7:31 AM

To search this site, enter a search term Briefing Room • Statements and Releases Turkey’s sudden and unwarranted withdrawal from the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence Against Women and Domestic Violence

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Exclusive] EU report on Turkey includes possible tourism sanctions

EUobserver.com – Headline News
Europe should be ready to kick Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan where it hurts (in his economy) if he goes back to his gas-drilling piracy in the Mediterranean,

EU TO TURKEY: Withdrawal from İstanbul Convention ‘sends a dangerous message’

Bianet :: English
Top European Union officials have made statements about Turkey’s withdrawal from the İstanbul Convention by the decree of President and ruling AKP Chair Erdoğan; they have urged the country to reverse its decision.

HDP’s Gergerlioğlu detained at Parliament

Bianet :: English
Stripped of MP status on March 17, HDP’s Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu was keeping a “Justice Watch” at the Parliament. He has been detained as part of a new investigation.

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Blogging Turkey’s Dark Saturday (20 March 2021)- Police raids on HDP quarters all over Turkey continues

In Uncategorized on March 20, 2021 at 16:53

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Rapporteur appointed on lawsuit against HDP

Hurriyet Daily News
The head of Turkey’s Constitutional Court on March 19 appointed a rapporteur on a lawsuit filed by the Supreme Court of Appeals’ chief prosecutor for the closure of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP).

Turkish police detain pro-Kurdish HDP officials, rights activist

AL JAZEERA ENGLISH (IN DEPTH)
Move comes days after a top public prosecutor demanded the dissolution of the HDP, the third-largest party in Turkey.

How did Turkey’s newspapers cover closure case against the HDP?

Bianet :: English
Here is a brief overview of how the print newspapers of Turkey, pro-government and critical alike, reported on the closure

History of party closures in Turkey

Several predecessors of both the ruling AKP and the HDP, which is facing closure now, had been shut down throughout the

Turkish prosecutor files indictment for dissolution of HDP

•

Hurriyet Daily News
Turkey’s state prosecutor filed a case with the constitutional court demanding the closure of the Peoples’ Democratic Party

HDP’s Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu stripped of MP status

•

Bianet :: English
HDP Kocaeli MP Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu has said that he does not recognize the decision and started protesting at the

Closure case against the HDP

Chief Public Prosecutor of the Court of Cassation has applied to the Constitutional Court and filed a lawsuit for closing the
Reuters – Reuters Editorial – Mar 17, 6:24 AM

ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Turkey’s parliament stripped pro-Kurdish lawmaker Omer Faruk Gergerlioglu of his MP status on Wednesday after his conviction for spreading terrorist propaganda was upheld, sustaining a long-running crackdown on the assembly’s

United States Department of State – Mar 17

The United States is closely following events in Turkey, including troubling moves on March 17 to strip Member of Parliament Omer Faruk Gergerlioglu of his parliamentary seat. We are also monitoring the

Freedom House – Mar 17

In response to the removal of opposition lawmaker Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu’s parliamentary immunity and the launch of a legal case aimed at banning his Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), Freedom House issued the following statement:

 

HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH TO TURKEY: ‘End probe of women over slogans at Feminist Night March’

Bianet :: English
Referring to the Human Rights Action Plan unveiled by Turkey, the HRW has called on the authorities to immediately put a stop to the criminal investigation opened into women’s rights activists for shouting slogans at the March 8 assembly in İstanbul.

Demirtaş congratulates Turkish court over ‘blatant violation’ of ECHR ruling | Ahval

Imprisoned Kurdish politician Selahattin Demirtaş on Tuesday said the judges presiding over his…

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Blogging Turkey’s Dark Saturday (20 March 2021)- Twitter to appoint representative to Turkey

In Uncategorized on March 20, 2021 at 14:03

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Facebook and Google already caved into Turkey’s arbitrary and increasingly repressive internet legislation. I was not expecting Twitter to do that as it doesn’t seem to profit as much as Google and Facebook do. However, Twitter remains to be one of the few open channels for many of us and so by this move Turkey will be executing a connection limitation as of next month. I am not sure Twitter will actually obey Turkey’s whimsical demands and their appointment may be symbolic. Still, it is a little symbolic victory for Turkey’s authoritarians…
Twitter

By Twitter Public Policy Friday, 19 March 2021 Twitter’s mission is to serve the public conversation and ensure the service is a place where people can connect, find credible information, and express themselves – anywhere in the world.

Twitter to appoint representative to Turkey

Hurriyet Daily News
Twitter accepted a requirement to appoint a local representative in Turkey as part of a new social media law that took effect in October 2020, according to a top Turkish official.

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Blogging Turkey’s Dark Saturday (20 March 2021)- Erdoğan decides to withdraw from Istanbul Convention #İstanbulSözleşmesi

In Uncategorized on March 20, 2021 at 12:33

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Today we woke up to a nightmare. Well, we are kind of used to it so don’t feel sorry for democrats in the country who have had their share of trauma already. In a midnight Presidential decree, Erdoğan decided to withdraw from the İstanbul convention, which was not even implemented. Even its existence and its reference to gender equality caused so much anxiety for the religious conservatives and nationalists.

Turkey withdraws from Istanbul Convention

Hurriyet Daily News
Turkey withdrew from a European treaty on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence, according to the country’s Official Gazette early on March 20.

Istanbul Convention – Wikipedia

The Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence Against Women and Domestic Violence, better known as the Istanbul Convention,

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#Cyberculture agenda: “After nearly two decades in the dark, Facebook releases its human rights policy

In Uncategorized on March 18, 2021 at 09:48

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Access Now – Mar 16, 2:31 PM

Facebook today released a Corporate Human Rights Policy for the first time in its 17-year history, becoming the latest Big Tech company to publicly articulate its commitments to upholding human rights. While Access Now is encouraged by Facebook’s

Wikipedia plans to charge large organizations using its encyclopedia

WTF Is an NFT, Anyway? And Should I Care?

Wired Top Stories
This week we talk about non-fungible tokens, digital art collectors, and what it’s like to sell one of your tweets.

Power to the Beeple: Digital art fetches $69.3M at auction

AL JAZEERA ENGLISH (IN DEPTH)
The sale also catapulted Beeple, named Mike Winkelmann, to become one of the top three most valuable living artists.
Bloomberg – William Turton – Mar 9, 1:32 PM

Hacker group says it wanted to show prevalence of surveillance Video footage was captured from Sequoia-backed startup Verkada A group of hackers say they breached a massive trove of security-camera data collected by Silicon Valley startup Verkada

EFF’s Crowd-Sourced Atlas of Surveillance Project Honored with Award for Advancing Public’s Right to Know About Police Spying

EFF.org Updates by Karen Gullo
Partnering with University of Nevada, Reno Reynolds School of Journalism Students, EFF Collects and Aggregates Data about Police Surveillance

SAN FRANCISCO—The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is pleased to announce it has received the James Madison Freedom of Information Award for Electronic Access for its groundbreaking, crowd-sourced Atlas of Surveillance, the largest-ever collection of searchable data on the use of surveillance technologies by law enforcement agencies across the country.

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One brave MEP Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu (@gergerliogluof ) is being expelled from the Parliament today… #GergerlioğluYalnızDeğildir

In Uncategorized on March 17, 2021 at 13:38

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Opposition member of parliament, Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu, from the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) speaking in parliament, May 2, 2019. © 2019 TBMM.

 

Human Rights Watch – Mar 16, 8:13 AM

(Istanbul) – Any move by Turkey’s parliament to use an opposition politician’s wrongful conviction for a social media post as a pretext to strip him of his parliamentary seat and jail him would compound the serious violation of his right to

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