Turkey’s government-imposed ban on access to online encyclopedia Wikipedia violates citizens’ right to freedom of expression, the Constitutional Court ruled on Thursday, as reported by media.
Turkey’s First Criminal Court of Peace supported the ban two years ago in order to block content that Ankara deemed to be criminal. According to the newspaper, this related to content that implied that Turkey supported terrorism.
In May, Wikimedia brought their case against the Turkish ban to the European Court of Human Rights.
According to Wikimedia, the encyclopedia’s refusal to remove two articles – about the Syrian war and state-sponsored terrorism – prompted Ankara to block all access to Wikipedia.
Turkey's Law 5651 regarding internet regulation has been repeatedly criticised by the country's opposition for violating freedom of expression and limiting rights of citizens for access to information.