TBMM Digital Media Commission President Hüseyin Yayman made a statement regarding the access ban imposed on the online gaming platform Roblax, which has 15 million users in Turkey, due to its content that could lead to the exploitation of children.
Expressing that they are a party against censorship and bans, Yayman said, “The government invited these platforms to Turkey, established community rules in Turkey, and we are the government and party that organized the relevant law numbered 5651. We defend freedoms to the end. However, in the final analysis, the balance between freedom and security must be established correctly. We never accept social media companies seeing themselves before states. We never accept social media companies seeing themselves above nations. Just as Roblox, Instagram, Meta and X operate and act in accordance with Germany’s legal rules in Germany, we want them to show the same sensitivity in Turkey. Some access barriers are being imposed. We would never find it right to impose access barriers, but on the other hand, we definitely, definitely expect digital networks to comply with Turkey’s law. We are against double standards, we defend freedoms and public order to the end.”
“OUR AIM IS TO MAKE DIGITAL NETWORKS COMPLY WITH THE COMMUNITY RULES AND LAWS OF THE COUNTRIES”
Emphasizing that social networks are very important, Yayman said, “Our issue is not Roblox or Instagram. Our goal is for all digital networks to comply with the community rules of those countries and the laws of those countries. As you know, social networks are very, very important. On the one hand, this is the area where virtual gambling, digital addiction, pedophilia, violence against women, sexual abuse, othering, racism, fascism, digital fascism, and censorship are most commonly practiced. While digital networks should bring more freedom, they have also opened the door to a new polarization. We need to behave in the virtual world the same way we behave in real life. There is a belief that what is a crime in real life is as if it is free in the virtual world, legal and moral.”
Saying that they think digital platforms should act in accordance with universal norms, Yayman underlined that they expect digital networks to act in accordance with Turkey’s law, traditions and religion.
