Rights group urges Turkey to protect free speech, rule of lawSeptember 29, 2014 - 16:54 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - A human rights group is calling on Turkey to take steps to protect free speech, the right to peaceful protests and the rule of law. According to the Associated Press, in a report released Monday, Sept 29, Human Rights Watch criticized government moves to control the media and the Internet and its clampdown on critics and protests. The group said that while thousands face prosecution for taking part in anti-government protests in 2013, few police officers have been held to account for abuses. It also said the government had weakened the rule of law by responding to a corruption scandal with laws that curb the independence of the judiciary. The group, however, welcomed the government's efforts to forge peace with Kurdish rebels to end a 30 year-old conflict. Related links: Related issues: Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | Russia warns Armenia against “falling into West’s trap” Zakharova maintained, however, that anything that will benefit the people of Armenia can only be welcomed. CSTO: Armenia has not participated in secretariat’s work recently Recently Armenia has not participated in the work of the secretariat of the CSTO, Imangali Tasmagambetov said. Meeting with U.S., EU not against third parties, says Armenia The meeting scheduled for April 5 is dedicated to strengthening of the Armenia-EU-US cooperation, Yerevan added. Ucom launches network modernization efforts in few regions of Armenia In particular, on March 28, the legacy Mobile Switching Subsystem will be replaced with a new one. |