Turkiye: Law proposal repealing Law No. 5651 on Regulation of Publications on the Internet and Combating Crimes Committed Through Such Publications was introduced to Grand National Assembly

On 8 May 2025, a legislative proposal to repeal Law No. 5651 on the Regulation of Publications on the Internet and Combating Crimes Committed Through Such Publications was submitted to the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye by Member of Parliament Mustafa Bilici. The proposal argues that Law No. 5651, which entered into force on 4 May 2007, has enabled administrative interventions such as content removal, access blocking, and bandwidth throttling without judicial authorisation. It states that these practices undermine constitutional guarantees of freedom of expression and contradict the case law of the European Court of Human Rights. The proposal also highlights concerns regarding legal uncertainty, broad discretionary powers granted to the Information and Communication Technologies Authority (BTK), and the resulting impact on digital rights and democratic oversight. It calls for the complete repeal of the Law, accompanied by a 6 month transition period to allow the legislature to prepare a new regulatory framework consistent with fundamental rights and judicial safeguards. The proposal was referred to the Digital Media Subcommittee and the Justice Committee for deliberation.