Erdogan fights 'mission impossible' against Twitter

Cengiz Candar

An image of Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan on a twitter account is pictured through a magnifying glass in this illustration picture taken in Istanbul March 21, 2014. Turkey's courts have blocked access to Twitter days before elections as Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan battles a corruption scandal that has seen social media platforms awash with alleged evidence of government wrongdoing. The ban came hours after a defiant Erdogan, on the campaign trail ahead of key March 30 local elections, vowed to "wi — An image of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on a Twitter account is pictured through a magnifying glass in this illustration picture taken in Istanbul, March 21, 2014. — REUTERS/Murad Sezer

Over a month ago, Al-Monitor posted my article "Erdogan takes on the Internet," dwelling on the new restrictions targeting the Internet in Turkey. President Abdullah Gul’s signing of the bill — the handiwork of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan — led to bitter disappointment inside and outside Turkey.

I recently reread that article, and these remarks caught my attention:

"The Internet, which Erdogan has had trouble coping with for some time, has actually become his 'public enemy number one.' It was thanks to the Internet, and especially to Twitter, that the bribery and corruption investigation was revealed."

My question at the end of the article was: “Can Erdogan also defeat the Internet?"

Erdogan fights 'mission impossible' against Twitter

The Turkish prime minister cannot win against social media.

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