Op-Eds

Şu sıralar Meclis gündeminde yer alan Kişisel Verilerin Korunması Kanun Tasarısının kısa sürede yasalaşması bekleniyor. Peki, bu kanun nasıl ortaya çıktı, bireyler ve şirketler açısından neler getiriyor ve hangi noktaları eksik bırakıyor?

Palestine was accepted as a member of the International Criminal Court (ICC) at the beginning of last month. With this development, the armed conflicts that threaten regional peace and pull the region onto fragile ground and Palestine’s efforts to be recognized as a state seem to gain a different dimension.

The cyber world, with its opportunities and threats, forces traditional approaches to change. While it has an impact on socio-economic and political structures, it also contains the potential to transform opportunities into threats with cybercrimes, attacks and intelligence aspects. In the 1990s, we encountered a wave of change that began to be felt more and more: the “Information Revolution”. The basic spirit of this revolution was a radical change in the tools that provided access to information. How? Since the invention of the printing press - for over 500 years - the circulation of information had been carried out on paper. But now we have screens rather than paper. First, our capacity to store information developed, then processing and instantly retrieving information. An officer no longer needs to go into musty, dusty archives to find data or documents. It is extremely easy today to transfer the desired data to a digital environment, store it, classify it and recall it when necessary.

In the last decade, we have witnessed the social changes created by a technology that dates back to ancient times and the great power it has to transform societies. As can be guessed, I am talking about the “Internet”, which had approximately 16 million users worldwide in 1995 and almost 3 billion today. The telegraph, telephone and television also caused rapid global changes when they first emerged. Similarly, the emergence of the internet and its spread worldwide have already paved the way for many important changes in the first decade of the 21st century. In order to understand the change, it is useful to examine some of the dynamics that played a role in the transition from an open internet order to a Balkanized internet structure.

In the last decade, we have witnessed the social changes created by a technology that dates back to ancient times and the great power it has to transform societies. As can be guessed, I am talking about the “Internet”, which had approximately 16 million users worldwide in 1995 and almost 3 billion today. The telegraph, telephone and television also caused rapid global changes when they first emerged. Similarly, the emergence of the internet and its spread worldwide have already paved the way for many important changes in the first decade of the 21st century. In order to understand the change, it is useful to examine some of the dynamics that played a role in the transition from an open internet order to a Balkanized internet structure.

The Parliament of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea decided to hold a referendum on February 27 and seek an answer to the question, “Should Crimea be part of Ukraine or Russia?” The referendum will be held on March 16, but the Parliament has inflamed the current debate with its decision to join Russia on March 6. With this development, the need to seek answers to the following questions has arisen: “Would the decision to secede by referendum violate international law?” and “Is Crimea seceding from Ukraine by referendum in accordance with international law?”

On February 27, the parliament and prime minister’s office of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea were occupied by armed men in military uniforms, and the airport in the capital city of Simferopol was occupied the following day. Roads and bridges connecting Crimea to Ukraine were closed, the peninsula’s communication lines to Ukraine were cut, telephone transmitters were silenced and internet connection was cut off. Initially, the news reported that these people were private security forces or mercenaries. Later, Putin requested authorization from the Russian Parliament to use military force in Ukraine on the grounds that “the lives of Russian citizens and Russian military personnel in the southern Crimea region were under threat.” However, it was soon understood that the soldiers were actually affiliated with Russia’s forces in the Black Sea. 

The events were first discussed in the context of international law around the question of “is a new type of military occupation taking place?” Because for the first time, people in military uniforms, who did not bear any distinguishing elements such as signs, ranks or license plates, occupied critical points of the Crimean peninsula and sealed off and blockaded the region. When it was later revealed that these soldiers were affiliated with Russia, a new debate began on the fact that such an operation was carried out without any notification and on the legal basis and justification of the intervention. This point perhaps constitutes the backbone of the debates. Because both Russia and the West are trying to base the same arguments on different realities.

"Responding a Cyber Catastrophe," highlights the increasing significance of cybersecurity in an interconnected world. It underscores the vulnerabilities stemming from global internet expansion, reliance on IT systems, and the growing prevalence of cyber espionage and cyberattacks. Central to the article is the discussion of "Cyber 9/11," a term evoking the catastrophic potential of major cyber incidents capable of crippling critical infrastructure, such as financial systems, and provoking societal chaos. 

The op-ed calls for comprehensive strategies to mitigate the risks of cyber catastrophes and enhance global cybersecurity resilience. It stresses that preparedness, international collaboration, and adaptable policy frameworks are essential to counter the evolving threat landscape effectively.

In principle, there is no statute of limitations for war crimes and crimes against humanity in international law. Therefore, documentation, evidence and database creation activities regarding crimes against humanity and war crimes that continue to be committed in Syria provide an important basis for the possible prosecution, investigation and trial stages that will take place after the war.

In principle, there is no statute of limitations for war crimes and crimes against humanity in international law. Therefore, documentation, evidence and database creation activities regarding crimes against humanity and war crimes that continue to be committed in Syria provide an important basis for the possible prosecution, investigation and trial stages that will take place after the war.

The NSA's intelligence activities and violation of personal privacy, whose echoes in the public opinion have not subsided, continue to be a subject of debate in the context of legal struggles. The understanding that implicitly grants authority to the US President, on the other hand, does not only question the balance between freedom and security, but also produces results that are against the control mechanisms.

The old market and trade understanding has changed completely; virtual markets and beyond that, the share of virtual trade in the total has gradually expanded. In today’s market understanding, there is the provision of goods in the form of ‘service’, ‘application’ or ‘software’ to the consumer. There are two things that the consumer can give to access this service: Money and/or personal data. In other words, it is possible to buy a ‘service’ in return by offering a small fee and/or our personal data. Consumers of the virtual world often prefer ‘free’ products and accept in advance to offer all their personal data to the seller in return. It is already slowly becoming apparent that this data exchange, which seems to be proceeding on the axis of mutual consent for now, is pregnant with extremely big problems…

The right to access the Internet will take its place in the basic texts in the coming period as a new human right. It is also necessary to take security measures in order to protect the rights of the individual from others and to ensure legal, political, social and economic stability based on public order.

Cyber ​​armies are an interesting alternative for countries with weak conventional military capacity, such as Iran, North Korea and Syria, because when comparing costs and outcomes, there is an extraordinary asymmetry in favor of the attacker.

The dependency on information technologies is increasing in every field. This situation necessitates the regulation, supervision, security of cyberspace and the establishment of a balance of power among the new actors emerging in this field.

The op-ed explores the parallels between NATO’s intervention in Kosovo and the Syrian conflict, suggesting the Kosovo intervention as a potential model for addressing the humanitarian crisis in Syria. It highlights the legal and political complexities involved in international interventions without explicit UN Security Council authorization.

Key Points:

1. Kosovo as a Precedent:

   • NATO’s aerial operation in Kosovo was deemed "illegal but legitimate" due to the lack of a Security Council resolution but justified by widespread humanitarian concerns and regional instability.

   • The intervention was later retroactively legitimized through UNSC Resolution 1244, which authorized an international security presence and political administration in Kosovo.

2. Application to Syria:

   • Similar factors present in Kosovo, such as Security Council deadlock, regional instability, and grave violations of international law, are evident in the Syrian case.

   • The use of chemical weapons in Syria is framed as a potential legitimizing factor for intervention, potentially justifying anticipatory collective self-defense or humanitarian intervention.

3. Legal and Legitimacy Challenges:

   • The Responsibility to Protect (R2P) doctrine and humanitarian intervention concepts are examined as possible justifications for action in Syria.

   • The op-ed underscores the absence of a universally accepted legal framework for interventions, leaving customary international law and state practice as the basis for justification.

4. Recommendations:

   • Any intervention must prioritize legitimacy by adhering to the principles of jus ad humanitarianism, using force only sparingly and strictly for humanitarian objectives.

   • The op-ed calls for balancing the need for action to prevent atrocities with maintaining international legal norms and legitimacy.

The article argues that while there is no legal basis for military intervention in Syria without UN Security Council approval, various legitimizing factors—such as humanitarian imperatives and regional security concerns—might make an intervention defensible. The Kosovo model is presented as a framework for navigating these legal and ethical dilemmas.

A year ago, the discussion of compliance with international law began with the downing of a Turkish warplane. Over time, the rules of engagement changed and finally, the downing of a military helicopter belonging to the Syrian army due to a border violation. The fact that both incidents occurred from different points qualifies the first incident as a violation of international law and the second as an application of international law.

Public opinion polls indicate that a large portion of Scotland, which will hold a referendum in 2014 to decide on independence, does not want independence, and that only around 30 percent of the vote will be "Yes."

This op-ed examines the systemic persecution of the Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar, focusing on the intersection of nation-state ideologies, statelessness, and international law. It highlights Myanmar's 1982 Citizenship Law, which effectively rendered the Rohingya stateless, as a root cause of their marginalization. The article critiques Myanmar's discriminatory policies and the international community's inadequate response, emphasizing the need for legal and humanitarian action under international law. It also underscores the broader implications of exclusionary nation-state practices on human rights and regional stability. 

Almanya’da hayata geçirilen ve gelen tepkiler üzerine askıya alınan Radikalleşme Başvuru Merkezi, uygulamalarıyla ciddi problemlerin doğmasına yol açabilir. Radikalleşen birey ve grupların belirlenmesi için uygulanacak yöntemlerin, toplumun diğer kesimleri üzerinde baskı oluşturmamasına dikkat edilmeli...

On June 22, 2012, the downing of a Turkish military aircraft, which was flying a mission in the Eastern Mediterranean, by fire from Syria while it was over the Mediterranean southwest of Hatay province, brought about many discussions. The foremost of these discussions is whether the unrest in Syria will spread to the countries in the region, as well as what attitude Turkey will adopt. When we look at what has happened in the past year, it can be observed that Turkey has been seriously affected by the instability in Syria. 

On the one hand, the events in Syria, which has been shaken by internal unrest for a long time, on the other hand, people crossing the border and coming to Turkish territory, harassing fires opened on Turkey from the Syrian border, and finally the downing of a Turkish military aircraft have created sufficient infrastructure for the tension of relations.