Deutsche Welle (DW) Türkçe faced renewed access restrictions as a court in Ankara, Türkiye / Turkey implemented a ban upon the Radio and Television Supreme Council’s (RTÜK) request on 17 November 2022. DW Türkçe had previously evaded a ban by operating on alternative domain names ‘dwturkce.com’ and ‘inspiredminds.de,’ which are now also blocked in Türkiye / Turkey.
RTÜK demanded DW to obtain a broadcasting license for its new websites, granting the broadcaster a 72-hour window for application. Despite previous blocks and license disputes, DW Türkçe continued its operations through different domain names. The current ban is a additional case in the attacks by Turkish authorities on international broadcaster.
RTÜK (https://www.rtuk.gov.tr/), has blocked access to Deutsche Welle’s (DW) websites, including ‘dwturkce.com’ and ‘inspiredminds.de.’ This move comes after RTÜK’s demand for DW to acquire a broadcasting license for its online presence. DW Türkçe had already faced a block on 30 June, 2022, due to a lack of license application. The recent ban follows the Turkish Ministry of Industry and Technology’s decision not to renew DW Türkçe’s operational license, leading to the closure of its Türkiye / Turkey office.
The South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) condemns these actions, considering them a threat to media freedom.
South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO) is a regional non-governmental, non-profit network of editors, media executives and leading journalists in Southeast, South, East and Central Europe. SEEMO members are in Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Georgia, Greece, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Moldova (with the territory of Transdnestria), Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Türkiye / Turkey, Ukraine and Uzbekistan. Austria, Italy, Vatican and San Marino have a special status in SEEMO. SEEMO has over 3000 individual members, and additional media as corporate members.
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