Member of Parliament Aykan Erdemir tried to access the website of the Diyarbakir Church in southeastern Turkey from the computer in his parliamentary office. He was greeted with a warning box stating that the site was blocked because it was considered to be pornographic.
"Humiliating, embarrassing and pure slander". That's how he describes the blocking of the website. Several other church websites were also blocked, but none of them due to accusations of pornographic content. The blocks were lifted after Erdemir complained about it.
Erdemir and a pastor from the Diyarbakir Church, Ahmet Guvener, said the incident provides a glimpse of the deep-seated hostility the Turkish government has towards Christians.
Erdemir, a member of the opposition Republican People's Party, said the country is steeped in "paranoia" about missionary activity, particularly in relation to conversion from Islam to Christianity.
