Iran Cancels Plans to Hold February Elections Electronically.

Iran Cancels Plans to Hold Feb. Elections Electronically. (TN).

Iran has called off plans to hold the two upcoming elections using electronic voting machines, Spokesman for Iran's Guardian Council (GC) Nejatollah Ebrahimian announced.

Speaking to the Tasnim News Agency on Wednesday, Ebrahimian pointed to a meeting of the GC earlier in the day and said the issue of using electronic ballot boxes in the upcoming elections was raised in the session and the majority of the GC members voiced their opposition to the plan.

One of the main reasons behind the decision not to hold the elections electronically is that the security of the new systems planned to be used for electronic elections was not confirmed by related authorities, he noted.

Back in June 2015, the Iranian cabinet members approved a plan to hold the upcoming parliament and the Assembly of Experts elections, due to be held on February 26, by using electronic ballot boxes. Read the full story here.

Iran’s Khamenei appoints new cyberspace council members, outlines Islamic policies

Iran’s Khamenei appoints new cyberspace council members, outlines Islamic policies. (Taz).

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei appointed new members to the Supreme Council of Cyberspace (SCC) and outlined its major policies.

Khamenei said in a decree, posted on his official website Sept. 5, that the main duty of the SCC is to carry out macro-management, take necessary and timely decisions, and oversee the area of interest.

He said the previous similar councils were void and handed over those councils’ tasks to the new one.
Iranian leader also urged to improve the council’s status for it to be able to take necessary decisions and conduct coordination among other government organizations in areas of interest.

Aside from that, he called for a technological improvement of cyberspace in the country and training personnel for areas related to cyberspace.

He also called for providing ample security for cyberspace in the country, developing the Iranian cyberspace in compliance with Islamic norms, and producing content that is in line with the Islamic culture.

On March 7, 2012, Ayatollah Khamenei decreed to establish the SCC.

Under the decree, the SCC is a body responsible for coordinating and implementing cyberspace policy in Iran.

The SCC enjoys significant authority and its decisions are legally-binding.

It has the power to unilaterally dictate policies relating to the Internet, and its actions cannot be obstructed by the Iranian parliament.


The SCC is also able to compel the Commission to Determine the Instances of Criminal Content (CDICC) to pursue particular policies on the Internet censorship, with the body having no choice but to comply with the SCC decisions.

Iran launches children’s SIM card with controlled access to 'Halal' mobile Internet.

Iran launches children’s SIM card with controlled access to 'Halal' mobile Internet. (Taz).

Iran has unveiled a special SIM card that allows parents to control the mobile Internet usage of their children. The children’s SIM card was unveiled April 30 in Iran’s central city of Qom during a ceremony attended by parliament speaker, Ali Larijani.

The SIM card allows parents to control how their children use the Internet and even monitor their contact list in the cell phone, Iran’s Mehr news agency reported.

Iranian Ministry of Communications and Information Technology earlier adopted a decision according to which all Iranian mobile operators should issue special SIM cards for children and teenagers with restricted access to 3G and 4G networks.

Under the ministry’s decision, sale of SIM cards to children and teenagers under 18 will be prohibited in Iran.

The latest statistics of Iran’s Internet Penetration Management Portal put the number of Internet users in Iran at 40 million, indicating that the Internet penetration rate of the country stood at 53.29 percent in June 2014. About 11.07 million of the users in Iran have used GPRS connection to access the Internet over the same period.

It should be noted that several of world's most popular networks, such as Twitter and Facebook are banned in Iran, while users are still able to access them via proxies. A proxy allows bypassing 'gates' meant to block certain sites.


A survey by Iranian Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports indicates that 69.3 percent of the country's young generation use proxy servers to by-pass the filters and access banned Internet websites.

Iran's 'Mullah control' smart filtering system to give access to websites based on user's identity.

Iran's 'Mullah control' smart filtering system to give access to websites based on user's identity. (Taz).

Iran's upcoming smart filtering system for websites provides access to users based on their condition and identity.

The Managing Director of Iran's Telecommunication Infrastructure Company Mahmoud Khosravi said that the system is pretty much like parental control, Iran's Fars News Agency reported on Dec. 8.

"The content will be blocked in the access layer, instead of international gateway," he explained.

"The access layer will be defined based on ISPs, operators, or provinces. We haven’t decided on that yet," Khosravi said.

Iran’s Communications and Information Technology Minister Mahmoud Vaezi said on Nov. 24 that the ministry plans to launch a smart filtering system for websites.

"The system will determine which parts of a website are criminal. So just those parts will be blocked and the rest will be accessible," he said, Iran 's IRNA News Agency reported.

"The project is expected to come on stream in 10 months," Vaezi said, praising the efforts of domestic experts.

Vaezi said on Nov. 15 that the ministry is in talks with foreign hosts to manage the mobile social network applications inside the country.

“We don’t intend to filter the applications,” he said, Iran ’s Khorasan News Daily reported.

“The ministry’s goal is not to limit Iranians’ access to Internet,” Vaezi said, adding that the ministry wants to refine the Internet and create a safe atmosphere for the users.


Vaezi has repeatedly supported the free use of social networks despite the conservatives' pressures. Hmmmm....A bit Like 'Parental Control' now 'Mullah control'

Turkey mulls leaving World Wide Web, Minister of Communication says

Erdogan: "I Feel at home in Iran"

Turkey mulls leaving World Wide Web, Minister of Communication says.(Taz).

Lutfi Elvan, Minister of Transport, Maritime and Communication, has said Turkey may leave the World Wide Web (www) to establish its own "ttt" protocol amid the Turkish government's efforts to rein in global websites including Twitter and YouTube, Hurriyet Daily News reported.

During an informal meeting with journalists in the Parliament on April 19, Elvan argued that not only Turkey, but also several European Union countries mull to establish "their own national Internet protocols."

"Instead of www, a ttt system can be formed. Turkey and other countries can establish their own domains. Such a move would detach the Internet systems from each other. This is a controversial issue," Elvan said.

The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks, while the web is one of the services that runs on the Internet. The hostname of a web server is often www, but the use of www is not required by any technical or policy standard and many web sites do not use it.

Elvan also called for an "international convention" to cope with the "the lack of control over social media."

The minister said: "The only source address of social media is U.S.-based companies. That's why, EU countries led by Germany and France have also problems with it. These countries are in talks with the U.S. Social media should have a joint international text of rules like the United Nations Charter. Otherwise, countries may form their own Internet domains to have more security."

Elvan's statement needs clarification, experts say, as it has not been previously known that any country, even China with its powerful censorship tool "Great Firewall", has left or plans to leave the main backbone of the Internet, which may lead to the establishment of "national intranets."

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), the nonprofit organization that coordinates the Internet's global domain name system, did not reply to Hurriyet Daily News' query seeking comment on April 19.

"We have reached a consensus to 'neutralize' malicious content that is the object of court decisions by pixelating," Elvan had said in a written statement on April 17.
YouTube remains blocked in Turkey since March 27 despite a court order.Hmmmm.....When will the US , Europe and NATO realize they have a Huge Islamist problem?........When it blows up in their faces?...Like Russia?

Turkish President Gül hints at approving disputed 'halal' Internet bill

Turkish President Gül hints at approving disputed 'halal' Internet bill.(HD).

Turkish President Abdullah Gül has hinted at his intention to approve much-disputed laws on the Internet and the Supreme Council of Judges and Prosecutors (HSYK) despite fierce criticism from the European Union and the opposition.  
Gül indirectly referred to the Constitutional Court as the venue for an in-depth analysis of these two key legal changes.

“As the president, I cannot put myself into the position of the Constitutional Court. I just make my objections on flagrant [violations]. The opposition party has already declared that it will take it to the Constitutional Court. This is our tradition. My predecessors have also been saying that the Constitutional Court has to decide on disputed laws,” Gül told journalists travelling with him to Hungary late Feb. 16.

Recalling that Turkey was a country negotiating with the EU for full membership and that it was not a country that restricted the use of the Internet, Gül, however, drew attention to the fact that no democracy allowed total freedom on the Internet.

“Whatever is a crime in real life is also a crime in virtual life or on the Internet. What’s the problem when it comes to the Internet? You can find the perpetrators in real life but it’s very hard on the Internet. A balance is needed between providing freedoms and taking care not to allow for a criminal medium. Problems can occur if we go over the limits when we are doing so,” he said.

Human dignity was above everything, Gül added. “There are good points to protect the human dignity [in this law]. We’ll continue to work on problematic issues when we return.” Hmmmm.....Welcome to Turkey......"Iranian Style."Read the full story here.

​Saudi religious police hunt down Twitter ‘witchcraft’ accounts.

​Saudi religious police hunt down Twitter ‘witchcraft’ accounts.(RT).

Saudi Arabia, which has the largest number of Twitter users relative to internet users in the world, has formed a special task force to track users of the popular social media who are accused of spreading vice and witchcraft.

The Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, which serves as the religious police of the conservative Gulf kingdom, is conducting surveillance of Twitter accounts in an effort to reign in heightened interest in subjects related to sorcery.

The religious public watchdog is keeping a lookout for those accounts which “are spreading vice and witchcraft” through the community, said Ahmed Al Jardan, the Commission’s spokesman, as quoted by the Saudi news network Al Arabiya.

“We will track down all those who are behind these accounts whether they are men or women…we are determined to eliminate these accounts before they become widespread and out of control,” he said.

Jardan pointed to a study conducted in Saudi Arabia that showed every fourth network user owned a Twitter account and that the total number of internet subscribers in the Gulf state is estimated at around 7 million - surpassing the combined population of Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar.

Figures that calculate ‘Twitter penetration’ are determined by the number of monthly active tweeting users relative to the total number of internet users.

The majority of internet users in Saudi Arabia do not own PCs, but use their mobile phones to access the system.

Al Arabiya quoted Saudi Arabia’s Mufti, the country’s leading Islamic cleric, as saying that social media networks like Twitter have become a “podium for spreading evil and bad ideas and exchanging accusations and lies” by many of their subscribers.

“Many Twitter users in the kingdom are also fools who lack modesty and faith,” he said.  

"Islamist Turkey" - Satirical Turkish site on trial for insulting religion.

“Thank God Almighty, I am a servant of Shariah.”  Source.

"Islamist Turkey" - Satirical Turkish site on trial for insulting religion.(AM).

One of Turkey’s most popular websites, the satirical Sour Dictionary (Eksi Sozluk), is on trial for insulting religion. 

Forty contributing writers have been charged following a complaint by popular Islamic figure Adnan Oktar. The trial kıcked off Jan. 14 with 27 of the defendants in attendance.

Oktar, in his complaint to the prosecutor, claimed that some entries in the dictionary included comments that amounted to insults of religion and prophets.

The entries he cited and for which the prosecutor eventually pressed charges include jokes that the Prophet Muhammad and Allah had “sent money” to Turkey’s Housing Development Administration and that Jesus Christ and religious people were of low intelligence.

Other examples include an entry on suggestions for a 100th name for Allah in addition to the 99 names Muslims have for their god and another titled “Allah’s official sponsors.”

The prosecutor is seeking jail terms of six to 12 months for the Eksi Sozluk writers. The defendants disputed the charges against them at their first hearing, arguing that they had no intention of insulting religion and that their comments fell within the scope of freedom of expression. A second hearing was scheduled for Feb. 17.

A string of similar legal cases in recent years indicate that accusations of insulting religion, especially Islam, is being used with increasing ease and frequency to press criminal charges.

Emma Sinclair-Webb, a Turkey researcher for Human Rights Watch, says that the trials point to a new trend. What was once an epidemic of cases of “insulting Turkishness” are now being replaced by those of “insulting religion.”

The zealous pursuit of “insults to religion” extends beyond the courts, with media outlets facing administrative sanctions. The Turkish CNBC-e channel, for instance, was fined by the Higher Board of Radio and Television over an episode of "The Simpsons" deemed offensive to religion.

Even though no one ended up behind bars in the above cases, the mere fact that people stand trial and risk jail sentences no doubt seriously intimidates the defendants as well as anyone with critical views on religion.

The ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) has come under fire for promoting “religious chauvinism.” It appears that prosecutors who endorse the AKP's views or vie to win the government’s favor are working hard to come up with such cases.

The prosecutors use the seemingly general wording of “insulting religion,” but all the cases pursued thus far have concerned comments deemed to be offensive to Muslims. Insults and hate speech against Jews or Christians clearly do not merit similar vigilance.

In this charged context, the case against Eksi Sozluk is likely to produce a serious bullying effect on social media. It is an alarming trial that calls for close monitoring.Read the full story here.

Turkey - 'Erdoganistan's' parliament approves changes to Internet law to tighten use.

Turkey - 'Erdoganistan's' parliament approves changes to Internet law to tighten use.(Yahoo).

Turkey's parliament approved changes to a law regulating use of the Internet late on Wednesday, enabling authorities to block access to web pages for violations of privacy that critics say will limit freedom of speech.

Parliament, where Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan's AK Party has a majority, voted in favor of the articles, which allow the telecommunications authority to block access to material within four hours without obtaining a prior court order.

The move coincides with a graft inquiry, portrayed by Erdogan as a "judicial coup" plot, which has prompted the government to reassign thousands of police officers and more than 200 prosecutors and judges.

The articles are part of a package of laws that still have to be adopted as a whole. Once it has, the bill will be sent to President Abdullah Gul for his approval.Hmmmm....."Halal Internet" on it's way ......just like in 'I feel like at home' Iran's.More here.

"The mosques are our barracks, the domes our helmets, the minarets our bayonets and the faithfull our soldiers" .....And now .....'The internet our graveyard'

EU Commissioner Füle to meet with Turkish EU minister over judiciary bill.

EU Commissioner Füle to meet with Turkish EU minister over judiciary bill.(Taz).

The European Union's Enlargement Commissioner Stefan Füle is to meet with Turkish EU Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu Jan. 14 in Strasbourg over the government's bill on the judiciary that has stirred much controversy for providing the executive more control on a key judicial body amid a graft scandal Hurriyet Daily News reported.

During the meeting the EU will voice its concern about "the recent developments," Füle said via Twitter late Jan. 13.

The announcement of the meeting comes only a day after Brussels asked Turkey to be consulted to ensure its judicial bill was in line with EU legislation.

After taking over from his outspoken predecessor Egemen Bagis, who was among the graft probe casualties of the Cabinet, Cavusoglu had urged the EU to refrain from "unilateral and impatient statements via the media."

The judicial bill is expected to overturn the reform of the Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors (HSYK) in line with Turkey's harmonization with the EU acquis.

Criticism regarding the move in Europe is also increasing as a professional judges association issued a statement condemning Ankara's intentions.

"The bill is contrary to the minimum standards on the independence of the judiciary foreseen by many European institutions (European Union, European Council)," MEDEL (Magistrats Européens pour la démocratie et les libertés) said in the statement, urging Turkey to "remain a country that respects the rule of law."

"MEDEL strongly condemns the Turkish government's attempt to exert dominance over the judiciary," the statement added.

The HSYK is at the center of the battle over control of the judiciary as its acting head has already condemned the current bill as "unconstitutional."Hmmm......There has been no direct criticism or statement [from the EU] directed towards us. I have had no contact [with EU officials],” said Davutoğlu.
 

"I'm Not A Dictator" - "Turkish Ministers Will Be Able to Give Internet Censor Orders Directly”

"I'm Not A Dictator" - "Turkish Ministers Will Be Able to Give Internet Censor Orders Directly”(bianet).

Bianet interviewed Serhat Koç, an advocate and telecommunications lawyer for Turkey’s Pirate Party, on the Draft Bill No 5651 on the internet services in Turkey.

“If the draft will be implemented, the life will harder for internet users in Turkey. Censors on citizen journalism, scientific research and social media will be a routine,” he said.

He also added that new institutions will allows authorities to implement Censors in skyrocket speed.

“Due to censorship, service providers will enhance their auto-censor mechanisms and alternative methods like DNS change will no longer work,” he added.

Bill increases the likelihood of censor.

The draft bill also put hate speech in the category for internet ban. This is the most problematic aspect of the bill, maybe.

Because Turkish Penal Code interprets hate speech towards “Islam, Muslims, Turkish-ness, Sunni sect”.

As a result, we observe cases like the ones of Fazıl Say and Sevan Nişanyan who have been convicted of charges related to freedom expression. Websites like “yenidonem.com” (newera.com) are closed down. Even though hate speech is important, I am pretty skeptical about how it will be interpreted on the internet. Some many website might be closed down because of that.

What else is in there?

The new draft compels judges to respond to internet-based “right violations complaints” in 24 hours. 

Considering that most of our judges have little idea about the internet, it is highly doubtful how they will make their decisions. We have faith on them! It is also up to İnternet Geliştirme Kurulu (Internet Improvement Institution) to decide on situations like monitoring, restriction, application or inspection.

It is something like National Security Agency in the U.S. It will also enable ministers and telecommunication authorities to be compatible on giving internet censor orders directly.Hmmm.......Erdogan : "I'm not a dictator. It's not even in my blood,"Read the full story here.

Raw Video - Turkey - AKP deputy performs roundhouse kick to the face of opposition member during judicial commission meeting.

Raw Video - Turkey - AKP deputy performs roundhouse kick to the face of opposition member during judicial commission meeting.

More here: Punches thrown as Turkish MPs debate judicial reform

Turkish FM Davutoğlu slams ‘jihadist Erdoğan’ translation in English media

How dare they call him a jihadist.

Turkish FM Ahmet Davutoğlu  slams ‘jihadist Erdoğan’ translation in English media.(TZ).

In remarks that appeared to be targeting Today's Zaman, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu has slammed the use of the word “jihadist” in an English translation for the Turkish word “mücahid” to describe the slogan employed by some of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's supporters, saying it is the reflection of a crusader and neo-Orientalist mentality.

Columnists and commentators in pro-government media have attacked Today's Zaman after its Ankara representative and columnist Abdullah Bozkurt translated on Twitter a slogan by Erdoğan's supporters at a rally in İstanbul as “jihadist Erdoğan.” 

The original slogan was “Mücahid Erdoğan,” the Turkish version of the Arabic word “mujahid,” which literally means “holy warrior” or “religious warrior.”

“PM Erdoğan fans chant ‘Jihadist Erdoğan' in another public rally next to his home in İstanbul late Friday night,” Bozkurt wrote in a tweet on Dec. 27.

Bozkurt instantly became the target of a wave of criticism by pro-government scribes on Twitter and later on in pro-government media, who claim that he intentionally attempted to present Erdoğan as a radical to the West and the US in particular knowing that the word “jihadist” has a very negative connotation there.

Burak Bekdil, a columnist for Hürriyet Daily News, also translated the same slogan as “jihadist Erdoğan” in a column published on Jan. 1, although it went largely unnoticed among the pro-government commentators.

Without openly naming Today's Zaman or Hürriyet Daily News, Davutoğlu on Friday said that the translation was an “attack which has no moral basis.”“Referring to our prime minister by translating the word ‘jihadist' in an English translation for the Turkish ‘mücahid' is an aggressive attitude that does not have any moral basis. I am saying it openly; this is crusader mentality or the reflection of neo-orientalist mentality,” Davutoğlu said during a televised program aired on Kanal 24 TV on Thursday.

Davutoğlu maintained that it was an aggressive attitude not only against the prime minister but to the Islam civilization and its beliefs.“Why shouldn't they [supporters of Erdoğan] chant? The names of the ones who resisted in Cyprus were also ‘mücahid.'

Davutoğlu also said there has been no official criticism directed at the government from the European Union regarding the reassignment of hundreds of police officials and proposed changes to the structure of the Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors (HSYK) -- the body responsible for appointments in the judiciary -- which has been criticized by the government since a corruption scandal erupted on Dec. 17 with detentions of officials, businessmen close to the government and sons of three ministers, who were later removed from their posts."There has been no direct criticism or statement [from the EU] directed towards us. I have had no contact [with EU officials]," said Davutoğlu in response to a question.Hmmmm..... Dutch EP rapporteur Oomen-Ruijten: Erdogan's International plot claims ‘pure nonsense'.Read the full story here.

Ria Oomen-Ruijten, a member of the European Parliament and the EP rapporteur on Turkey, said the recent events have shaken the image of Turkey, not just in Europe but all around the globe, the result being “an absolute bad image.”

Oomen-Ruijten has already completed the draft of her report on Turkey and the draft is expected to be voted on at the EP plenary at the end of February.

Reacting to Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's characterization of Prosecutor Muammer Akkaş as a “disgrace,” the EP rapporteur noted that combating corruption was of utmost importance for the good functioning of the rule of law “whether politicians like it or not.”

Several unions and NGOs will demonstrate this weekend in Ankara to denounce the Erdogan gov massive corruption allegations.

Several unions and NGOs will demonstrate this weekend in Ankara to denounce the Erdogan gov massive corruption allegations.(HD).

The organizers of the march, called “The Freedom, peace, democracy, justice and labor rally,” include the Confederation of Progressive Trade Unions (DİSK), the Confederation of Public Sector Trade Unions (KESK), the Turkish Chamber of Architects and Engineers (TMMOB) and the Turkish Medical Association (TTB).

A group of representatives of the unions revealed their slogan for the rally during a gathering in Istanbul’s Galatasaray Square Jan. 9, namely, “There cannot be a safe wheel in a broken system.”

“Join us and let’s shout together our revolt … Let’s clean this filth [together],” DİSK General Secretary Arzu Çerkezoğlu said during the press statement on behalf of the organizers.Hmmmm.....Turkey is heading for a 'Hot Spring'.Read the full story here.

'Tools of Dictatorship' - New draft law grants immunity to Turkish TİB personnel.

'Tools of Dictatorship' - New draft law grants immunity to TİB personnel.(TZ).

According to a new draft law recently prepared by the government, Telecommunications Directorate (TİB) personnel will no longer be prosecutable for crimes related to their duties without permission from the TİB president and the minister of transportation, maritime affairs and communications.

According to a report published by the Taraf daily on Friday, a draft law prepared by the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government will grant special immunity to TİB personnel. 

The draft reportedly states: “If TİB personnel commit a crime while performing their duty, a criminal investigation cannot be launched against them unless permission is requested from the TİB president and the minister of transportation, maritime affairs and communications. If these two people do not give permission, no criminal investigation can be launched against any TİB personnel.”

The government reportedly says it prepared the draft law to restrict wiretapping. However, the change will make personnel within the TİB, the body responsible for wiretapping, immune to prosecution.

This draft law came soon after National Intelligence Organization (MİT) official Ahmet Cemalettin Çelik was made the new head of TİB on Dec. 23 of last year amid a major corruption investigation in which the sons of three ministers, many bureaucrats and well-known businessmen were detained on charges pertaining to corruption and bribery on Dec. 17.

According to another section of the draft law, TİB will be given the authority to block access to specific websites without the need for a court order. According to current regulations, a website cannot be blocked unless a court order is obtained first. However, the regulation in the new draft law hands this authority to the TİB president.Hmmm.......Erdogan : "I'm not a dictator. It's not even in my blood,"

Breaking - Video: Turkey - In 2 passenger buses, prosecutors found smuggled arms and munitions, seized them in Adana.

Breaking - Video: Turkey - In 2 passenger buses, prosecutors found smuggled arms and munitions, seized them in Adana.HT: WashingtonPoint.

"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

'Welcome to Turkey...Iranian Style' - Turkish draft bill to allow limitation of and surveillance in Internet.

'Welcome to Turkey...Iranian Style' - Turkish draft bill to allow limitation of and surveillance in Internet.(HD).

A draft bill will permit authorities to limit access to the Internet and monitor all actions by individuals online and keep such records for two years, daily Hürriyet has reported.

Three articles about Internet usage were concealed within a longer draft bill on the Family and Social Policy Ministry’s organizational structure and responsibilities, Yalçın Doğan, a columnist from daily Hürriyet, revealed yesterday.

The draft law will permit officials to limit keywords more easily, meaning access to videos on video-sharing websites such as YouTube that include keywords deemed problematic by Turkish authorities will be blocked.

All individuals’ Internet records, including details about what sites they have visited, which words they have searched for on the web and what activity they have engaged in on social networking websites, will be kept for one or two years, according to the draft law.

Web providers will also be forced to become members of a new Internet union to be formed under the control of government, Doğan wrote.

The draft bill is designed to “protect the family, children and youth from items on the Internet that encourage drug addiction, sexual abuse and suicide,” according to daily Hürriyet.

Responding to a question on the matter, ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) spokesperson Hüseyin Çelik said Turkey would never become like China, which is famous for its Internet censorship.

“Turkey is not China and will never be like China in this manner. Aren’t we all in consensus on having some laws about social media and Internet media? There can be regulations based on world standards anywhere in the world,” said Çelik.

Hmmm......Erdogan: "Democracy is like a train. We shall get out when we arrive at the station we want."

Iranian Minister: country’s internet bandwidth to increase by 200 percent.

Iranian Minister: country’s internet bandwidth to increase by 200 percent.(Taz).

Iran will increase its internet bandwidth by 200 percent in the next Iranian calendar year, which will start on March 21, 2014, Iranian Minister of Information and Communications Technology, Mahmoud Vaezi said, Iranian Mehr news agency reported on Nov. 28.

He also underlined that during the last three months, the country's internet bandwidth was increased by 25 percent, reaching 97 GHz.

It should be recalled that, more than 45 million people are using internet in Iran, the IRNA reported on April 7, citing data released by the National Internet Development Center.

The figure indicates that the Internet penetration rate of the country stood at 61.06 per cent by the end of the last Iranian calendar year (ended on March 21).

About 30.11 per cent of internet users in Iran (22.629 million) have used a GPRS connection to access the Internet over the same period.

The rate of optic connectors, Wimax connection users and Adsl connection users in Iran stood at 8.13, 2.7 and 10.89 per cent respectively by the end of the last calendar year.

The number of internet users in the year which ended in March 2012 reached 32.7 million in Iran.
Since 2005, Iran has been developing a "national intranet" to improve control over internet content and improve speed.

"Halal Internet" - Internet Enters ‘Coma’ in Iran – Ahead of Presidential Election.

"Halal Internet" - Internet Enters ‘Coma’ in Iran – Ahead of Presidential Election.HT: UskowiOnIran.

“The Internet is in a coma,” wrote Tehran’s Qanoon daily earlier this month. The Middle East Online in a piece published today explains the symptoms. The authorities, mindful of massive street demonstrations post-2009 election, have tightened control of the Internet, deliberately slowing it down for average users.

“It only happens in Iran: the election comes, the Internet goes,” Qanoon quoted a recent tweet in Farsi.

Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and numerous other sites, including thousands of blogs, have been censored in Iran in the aftermath of the 2009 protests. Now the Internet has become so slow that the average person cannot download almost anything. But the drop in bandwidth and widespread disruption of the Internet is now severely affecting businesses, banks and even government organizations.
A network administrator at a major Internet service provider in Tehran is quoted on the report that his company had been unable to address complaints about slower speeds, particularly accessing pages using the HTTPS secure communications protocol.

“Browsing (the net) is difficult due to the low speed. Even checking emails is a pain,” he said.

The problem is not limited to slower speeds, but also affects what people can actually access online. The censors have taken great care to ensure that people do not see or read things deemed to be inappropriate from their viewpoints. The last remaining software that enabled users to bypass filters imposed on net traffic, like the virtual private networks (VPN), “have become practically inaccessible,” said an Iranian IT website. (The Middle East Online, 19 May)

VPN uses certain protocols to connect to servers outside Iran. In that way, the computer appears to be based in another country and bypasses the filters. Use of VPN, or its sale, is illegal in Iran.

Ramezanali Sobhani-Fard, a member of Majlis and chairman of its communications committee, said VPN was blocked in early March, which has contributed to slowing the Internet.

Last year, the authorities established the Supreme Council of Cyberspace, tasked with guarding Iranians from “dangers” on the Internet. The council is now the lead agency for implementation of official Internet policies and behind the recent disruptions in the use of the Internet in the country.Read the full story here.