Court blocks access to news about Enes Kara

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An access block has been imposed on the news about university student Enes Kara, who was forced by his family to stay in the dormitory of a religious community in eastern Turkey and committed suicide due to the oppression that he faced there and his anxiety about the future.

Enes Kara's father Mehmet Kara applied to the İskenderun 2nd Criminal Judgeship of Peace and said that in the related news reports, "his personality rights were attacked, the news and videos increased their grief, the related content violated privacy, he was subjected to social pressure and the publications were increasing the aggrievement of the family."

Citing these reasons, father Kara said that the news reports were "insulting his personality rights" and requested censorship.

The İskenderun 2nd Criminal Judgeship of Peace has accepted the request of father Mehmet Kara and imposed an access block on a series of news reports about Enes Kara. In the ruling of the judgeship, it has been acknowledged that "the incident is newsworthy". However, in reference to the content of news, the Judgeship has said that "by citing [Enes Kara's] remarks in the video that he took, they [media outlets] made publications that would hold his family responsible for his death and increased the grief of the applicant and his family, who had already been grieving..."

The ruling of the Judgeship has also indicated that "the aggrievement of the family will continue in the event that the publications continue, and due to the publications on the Internet, the comments made and/or to be made by the users who access the content may increase the aggrievement of the family." Noting that the news "also has content pertaining to the private life and lifestyle of the applicant," the ruling has said that "he is not obliged to withstand the related news content." The Judgeship has further concluded that the related news "violated the right to privacy."

Accordingly, the İskenderun 2nd Criminal Judgeship of Peace has imposed an access block on a series of news reports about Enes Kara.

What happened?

Enes Kara (20), a sophomore at the Fırat University Faculty of Medicine in Turkey's eastern province of Elazığ, talked about his anxiety about the future and the oppression that he faced at the dormitory of a religious community; Kara took his own life afterwards.

The video that he posted nearly a month before the incident was widely shared on social media after his passing. Leaving a suicide note as well, Kara said that though he was not a Muslim, the dorm where he was staying was forcing him to perform daily prayers, attend the classes of the religious community and do daily chores such as cooking and cleaning.

"I have lost my entire joy for life and enthusiasm in the situation that I have found myself in," he said in the video. (HA/SD)