Turkey's business community warns against internet control

The Turkish business community has warned against a government-pushed bill to increase control over the Internet, which it said might lead to a wider censorship, local Daily News reported Monday. Many websites have been blocked since the Internet Law of Turkey came into effect in July, 2007, said the Turkish Industry and Business Association (TUSIAD) in a written statement Monday. "The planned amendments to the Internet Law will increase censorship on the Internet. The draft should be cleared of articles that could harm the fundamental rights and freedoms," said the statement. "The business group urged the parliament to consult with civil society organizations to improve the draft," it said. A draft law allowing authorities to limit access to the Internet and monitor all actions by individuals online was submitted to the Turkish parliament last week. "All users' Internet records, including details about what sites they have visited, and which words they have searched, will be kept for one or two years," according to the draft law.