Istanbul Bar Association reacts to Instagram access ban: 'Steps must be taken to protect freedom of expression'

The Istanbul Bar Association has reacted to the blocking of access to Instagram, demanding that the justification for the decision be explained as soon as possible. The Bar stated that they expect relevant institutions and organizations to take steps to protect citizens' freedom of expression.

The Istanbul Bar Association opposed the access ban imposed on Instagram by the Information and Communication Technologies Authority (BTK). In the statement made by the Bar, it was noted, "We expect the justification for the access ban to be explained as soon as possible and for the relevant institutions to take steps to protect citizens' freedom of expression."

The statement also referred to the Constitutional Court's rulings on rights violations regarding similar bans.

The following statements were included in the statement made by the Bar:

 "Although the justification for the blocking decision has not been officially announced, we state that the freedom of information and communication, which is a part of freedom of expression, must be protected. Taking into account the violation rulings issued by the Constitutional Court for similar situations, we expect the justification for blocking access to the relevant social network to be explained as soon as possible and for the relevant institutions and organizations to take steps to protect citizens' freedom of expression"