"Halal Internet" - Vimeo blocked in 'Islamist' Turkey after amendment to Internet law.

"Halal Internet" - Vimeo blocked in 'Islamist' Turkey after amendment to Internet law.(TZ).

Vimeo, a US-based video-sharing website on which users can upload, share and view videos, has been blocked in Turkey upon a ruling by Criminal Court of Peace late on Thursday.

The decision came after a deputy from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) introduced an amendment to Law No. 5651 on cybercrimes, a move that could pave the way for the government to censor the Internet and social media as well as profile Internet users.

The move have raised concerns over government's widening encroachment on private lives of people as well as different mediums where people express their social and political thoughts.

“The government is making an effort to silence the Internet and social media, just as it did with the media following the [recent] corruption operation,” Emrehan Halıcı, deputy chairman of the Republican People's Party (CHP), said on Thursday.

According to the changes, which were included in an omnibus bill on the Ministry of Family and Social Policy, the minister of transport, maritime affairs and communications as well as the head of the Telecommunications Directorate (TİB) will be able to block websites without obtaining a court order.

The blocking of Vimeo came after protesters frequently used the website to share videos covering the nation-wide anti-government demonstrations during month-long Gezi protests in last summer.

The move is seen by many people as silencing internet tools to prevent dissidents and citizen journalists from sharing video footage regarding any social and political activity.Hmmmm........“Withholding information is the essence of tyranny. Control of the flow of information is the tool of the dictatorship.” ― Bruce Coville