Turkish President Approves Controversial Internet Law

Turkey's President Abdullah Gul has approved a law which will tighten control of the Internet.

The move, which enables the authorities to block access to webpages without a prior court order, is expected to raise further concerns about free speech in Turkey.

Gul expessed his approval of the legislation on his Twitter account, Turkish newspaper Zaman has reported. Earlier, he had stated there were problems with some elements of the Internet law.

The bill has led to some discontent in society. On February 8, a protest against it in Istanbul was dispersed after the police fired teargas.

This is the second Turkish law that has sparked controversy in the past weeks. A law which increased government influence over the judiciary envisages more power of the executive in naming of judges and prosecutors.

On Sunday, a debate on the legislation in parliament turned into a fight and ended with a broken nose.

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