Next year will be the 150th anniversary of the publication of “On the Origin of Species” (24 November 1859) and the 200th anniversary of Darwin's birth (12 February 1809). Various commemoration events, special publications, conferences, etc. are planned for the anniversary year.
Creationists will surely try to mark the event in their own way. Or maybe they have already stared the show…
Turkey where creationists seem to enjoy some influence has, for instance, banned prominent British academic and evolutionist Richard Dawkins' website.
According to Ayhan Simsek of Southeast European Times, an Istanbul court ordered a ban on Turkish access to British author Richard Dawkins' site after controversial Islamist and creationist Adnan Oktar claimed the site had libeled his character.
Mr. Oktar and his followers have been campaigning against Darwinism, by publishing and distributing thousands of books for free, in Turkey and in more than 50 other countries.
Oktar's book “Atlas of Creation” contained photographs that purportedly show animals unaffected by evolutionary change. "These living things have survived for millions of years without the slightest change in their structures. The fact that these insects never changed is a sign that they never evolved".
Mr. Oktar's book has naturally received rough treatment on Dawkins' website, where the British academic pointed out errors in its content and attacked Oktar for manipulating facts. According to Dawkins, some of the featured "animals" for instance were actually fishing lures, while Oktar simply misidentified others. "I am at a loss to reconcile the expensive and glossy production values of this book with the 'breathtaking inanity' of the content," the scientist wrote in July.
In another article in Southeast European Times, A. Simsek specifies that Dawkins' website is not the only victim of the legal campaign by Mr. Oktar against Darwinist or atheist sites. By exploiting loopholes in Turkish law, they managed to obtain temporary bans on leading internet sites, including blogs, citing alleged insults to Islamist authors. For instance, authorities have blocked access to Turkish evolutionist websites such as ateizm.org.
In late September2008, they also banned the website of a major trade union, the Union of Turkish Educators (Egitim Sen), for publishing a criticism of “Atlas of Creation” almost 19 months ago.
The controversial Mr. Oktar received a 3-year prison sentence last May for founding an illegal organization “for personal gain and with criminal intent”. He remains free on appeal. His group's considerable financial backing remains a mystery, and the Turkish press often accuses the group of secretive, cult-like practices and financial exploitation of sympathizers.
The controversy places Turkey's ruling neo-Islamist Justice and Development Party (AKP) in a delicate situation. On one hand, the party has announced its commitment to the EU accession process. On the other hand, some leading AKP members have publicly disputed evolutionist ideas in the past. The party, however, has no direct link to Oktar and has tried to distance itself from his group.
Champion of Internet Censorship in Europe
According to leftist Radikal daily, via Hurriyet daily, Turkey is the only country implementing government controls and internet censorship in Europe.“There is no country in the West that stands as an example of the censorship method which Turkey implements; only in this country the government has full control”, Mr. Mete Tevetoglu, the head of the Istanbul Bar Association’s Information and Law of Information Center told Radikal.
In Turkey, the Telecommunications Authority, which governs the Internet, transforms into a censorship bureau in such matters, he added.
Turkey is listed together with Tunisia, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Turkmenistan, Iran and Vietnam, among countries that implement censorship.
Turkey has blocked access to 1,112 Internet sites since 2007. Turkey’s censorship focuses on topics such as terrorism, religion, Atatürk, and pornography.
According to Radikal, in the West, Internet censorship is not perceived as a solution to even the most serious internet-related crimes such as child pornography. Western countries have very strict laws relating to child pornography but treat related cases as civil matters under the jurisdiction of police and the courts.
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Creationists will surely try to mark the event in their own way. Or maybe they have already stared the show…
Turkey where creationists seem to enjoy some influence has, for instance, banned prominent British academic and evolutionist Richard Dawkins' website.
According to Ayhan Simsek of Southeast European Times, an Istanbul court ordered a ban on Turkish access to British author Richard Dawkins' site after controversial Islamist and creationist Adnan Oktar claimed the site had libeled his character.
Mr. Oktar and his followers have been campaigning against Darwinism, by publishing and distributing thousands of books for free, in Turkey and in more than 50 other countries.
Oktar's book “Atlas of Creation” contained photographs that purportedly show animals unaffected by evolutionary change. "These living things have survived for millions of years without the slightest change in their structures. The fact that these insects never changed is a sign that they never evolved".
Mr. Oktar's book has naturally received rough treatment on Dawkins' website, where the British academic pointed out errors in its content and attacked Oktar for manipulating facts. According to Dawkins, some of the featured "animals" for instance were actually fishing lures, while Oktar simply misidentified others. "I am at a loss to reconcile the expensive and glossy production values of this book with the 'breathtaking inanity' of the content," the scientist wrote in July.
In another article in Southeast European Times, A. Simsek specifies that Dawkins' website is not the only victim of the legal campaign by Mr. Oktar against Darwinist or atheist sites. By exploiting loopholes in Turkish law, they managed to obtain temporary bans on leading internet sites, including blogs, citing alleged insults to Islamist authors. For instance, authorities have blocked access to Turkish evolutionist websites such as ateizm.org.
In late September2008, they also banned the website of a major trade union, the Union of Turkish Educators (Egitim Sen), for publishing a criticism of “Atlas of Creation” almost 19 months ago.
The controversial Mr. Oktar received a 3-year prison sentence last May for founding an illegal organization “for personal gain and with criminal intent”. He remains free on appeal. His group's considerable financial backing remains a mystery, and the Turkish press often accuses the group of secretive, cult-like practices and financial exploitation of sympathizers.
The controversy places Turkey's ruling neo-Islamist Justice and Development Party (AKP) in a delicate situation. On one hand, the party has announced its commitment to the EU accession process. On the other hand, some leading AKP members have publicly disputed evolutionist ideas in the past. The party, however, has no direct link to Oktar and has tried to distance itself from his group.
Champion of Internet Censorship in Europe
According to leftist Radikal daily, via Hurriyet daily, Turkey is the only country implementing government controls and internet censorship in Europe.“There is no country in the West that stands as an example of the censorship method which Turkey implements; only in this country the government has full control”, Mr. Mete Tevetoglu, the head of the Istanbul Bar Association’s Information and Law of Information Center told Radikal.
In Turkey, the Telecommunications Authority, which governs the Internet, transforms into a censorship bureau in such matters, he added.
Turkey is listed together with Tunisia, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Turkmenistan, Iran and Vietnam, among countries that implement censorship.
Turkey has blocked access to 1,112 Internet sites since 2007. Turkey’s censorship focuses on topics such as terrorism, religion, Atatürk, and pornography.
According to Radikal, in the West, Internet censorship is not perceived as a solution to even the most serious internet-related crimes such as child pornography. Western countries have very strict laws relating to child pornography but treat related cases as civil matters under the jurisdiction of police and the courts.
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