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Turkey's Constitutional Court: Twitter ban violates freedom of speech
Since Turkey blocked access to Twitter in late March -- in response to posts about the prime minister's alleged corruption -- there's been plenty of legal back-and-forth, with the ban even being lifted temporarily as judges weighed complaints against the government. Today's news might mean Twitter is back for good: The Constitutional Court ruled that blocking the social-media platform was unconstitutional on the grounds that it violates the right to free speech. Most importantly, the ruling requires Turkey to immediately restore access to Twitter. According to the Hurriyet Daily News, this ruling may be used as a precedent for similar cases in the future, possibly preventing authorities from imposing widespread bans like this again. It's unclear whether this ruling will also affect the country's ban on YouTube, which is currently in effect. In response to the ruling, Twitter's @Policy account tweeted: "We welcome this Constitutional Court ruling, and hope to have Twitter access restored in Turkey soon."
Daily Roundup: the future of Oculus Rift, Turkey drops Twitter ban and more!
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
Turkey's Twitter ban has been overturned (updated)
The Turkish government's ban on Twitter was probably always a losing battle, given the various workarounds available to the country's tech-savvy citizens. But now the six-day-old prohibition is also losing in the courts, according to a report from the Hürriyet Daily News. The newspaper says a Turkish court has issued a "stay of execution" on the government's order, which means the ban should be lifted until judges have the chance to weigh up the many complaints that have been lodged against it. This sounds like a positive step for opposition parties and civil rights activists, but it could equally prove to be just a temporary victory in the face of Prime Minister's Erdogan's continued threats against the "scourge" of social media. Update: Shortly after the court ruling, Twitter has come forward to confirm that it was one of the parties that filed a complaint. In a post on the company's official blog, Twitter General Counsel Vijaya Gadde said that earlier today, the company filed petitions for lawsuits in an attempt permanently overturn the country-wide access ban. While it awaits a response, Twitter said it has also begun using its "Country Withheld Content" tool for the first time in the country, hiding tweets belonging to a user who the public prosecutor believes could be in danger. [Image credit: Myrat/Wikipedia]
