Turkish YouTube Ban Violated Freedom of Expression, According to European Rights Court
The European Court of Human Rights(ECHR) unanimously ruled that a Turkish court order blocking access to YouTube violated Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights.
The Ankara Criminal Court of First Instance urged the order on the ground that YouTube contained approximately 10 videos that were considered insulting to the memory of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, who was known as the “Father of the Turks.”
The court order prevented access to YouTube from May 5, 2008, till October 30, 2010, and the plaintiffs, Turkish law professors Serkan Cengiz, Yaman Akdeniz and Kerem Altıparmak, claimed that the order posed hurdles in their right to freedom to attain information and ideas.
The ECHR held that the order was an unwarranted interference by public authority of the rights guaranteed by Article 10.
