In a new step to suppress freedoms in Turkey, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's regime intends to impose fines on Facebook if the company violates a controversial new law on social media.
A senior Turkish official told "Bloomberg" that Facebook has not notified Erdogan's government, officially, to appoint a local representative in Turkey, explaining that Ankara will begin imposing an initial fine of 10 million lira on the company in November.
The Turkish Ahval website stated that Facebook had not issued an official statement regarding non-compliance with Turkey's controversial law, but a representative of the company's human rights team confirmed this. Turkish lawyer Yamin Akdeniz said that Facebook's decision may affect other big companies that have many users in Turkey.
According to reports, the failure of the major companies to declare compliance with a Turkish law to tighten control over social media sites indicates that they are hesitant in that decision for fear of exposing users and employees to legal and financial pressure from the Erdogan regime. The site stated that if other social media sites follow the decision of "Facebook", this will represent a major setback for the Turkish government, who are accustomed to controlling local media and suppressing freedom of expression on social media, as more than 18 thousand people face charges due to social media posts.
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