Erdogan declares war again on social media… here’s what he said

A new sword hangs over anyone who thinks about opposing Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Justice and Development Party. Erdogan has declared war on social media, which he and his group have long used to spread rumors and lies, in what is known as the fourth generation wars against anti-Muslim Brotherhood regimes.

This came in a recorded video message to the Fourth Conference of Ministers and Information Officials of the Organization of Turkish States, held in Istanbul. 247 News Bulletin quoted Erdogan describing social media sites as digital fascism, considering that they pose a threat today to the right of billions of people to receive accurate and impartial information.

In a video message, Erdogan said: “The wave of lies and fabrications that we saw during the Karabakh war reminded us of the importance of this issue, and showed how necessary our ranks should be, not only was the war fought on the ground, but a 44-day hard struggle was fought in many media outlets, from print and video media to social media, and in the light of bitter experiences, we all see this very clearly now”.

Erdogan continued: “The media, described as the fourth power in democracies, could become a tool to manipulate the truth, covering the truth in the hands of some powers, global companies and malicious circles”, in remarks that could be a prelude to further restrictions on social media and freedom of expression already restricted in Turkey, especially before the 2023 general elections, amid an unprecedented economic crisis exacerbated by Erdogan’s economic policies, which could threaten the survival of Erdogan, the Muslim Brotherhood’s biggest supporter, in power.

Continuing his claims of restricting freedom of expression on social media, Erdogan said: “In particular, social media channels, where there is no self-policing, inspection, rule or moral values, pose grave risks to all societies”, he said, adding: “I consider communication to be an issue of strategic importance, at least as much as defense, security and health”.