Turkey blocks Twitter and the whole world tweeted its dismay

When one corrupt man's wish causes humanity's anguish. Who will win such battle? After Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan delivered a speech threatening to block Twitter, the darkness spread over the Internet.

Users of Twitter who tried to login to their accounts on Thursday were not able to access their timeline. The website displayed what appears to be a message from the telecommunication authorities of the country citing a court order that prompted the block. The microblogging site has been the platform used by anti-Erdogan parties accusing the closest allies of the leader of corruption.

Voice recordings and some documents were posted on Twitter as evidence of the said corruption. The evidences allegedly point to former ministers of the Turkish government and their sons speaking with an Iranian trader about planned smuggling activities. The documents have not been authenticated.

Erdogan has denied the accusations and has claimed that all evidences were fabricated by political enemies.

"Twitter, mwitter! We will wipe out all of these" said Erdogan in front of thousands of his followers during a rally Thursday night. Roughly translated, Erdogan meant "Twitter schmitter!"

The Twitter's block comes nine days before the local elections on March 30. There are speculations that the ruling party of Erdogan will weaken following the protests on June 2013 and the scandal that exploded in December where leaked tapes put bad light on Erdogan. The said videos purportedly showed the prime minister lambasting reports on media and ordering that journalists be fired from their jobs. Another file showed the discussion between him and his son on how to run millions of euros.

All eyes on Turkey

Ironically, after Turkey blocked Twitter, the cyberspace was flooded by the hashtag #TwitterisblockedinTurkey in protest of Erdogan's move. The protests in Twitterdom is a mixed of resignation, outrage, and humor. There were calls for street protests while some compared the move of Turkey to what can only be possible to happen in North Korea.

One user pointed out that the major news centers across the globe are following the developments.

"Congrats Turkey! #TwitterisblockedinTurkey," a certain @CheshireKedisi posted.

Another user tweeted a humorous but satirical cartoon. "The country banned from tweeting is also where users enjoy twitter most," wrote a certain @bekirbasarozer.

Likewise the support from the international community has poured.

European commissioner for digital agenda Neelie Kroes also protested via the microblogging site.

"The Twitter ban in #Turkey is groundless, pointless, cowardly. Turkish people and intl community will see this as censorship. It is." Kroes tweeted.

The U.S. State Department also issued a statement to Turkish media. "We remain very concerned by any suggestion that social media sites could be shut down. Democracies are strengthened by the diversity of public voices," the State Department said. Twitter is currently investigating the matter and has tweeted an alternative for its users in Turkey. "Turkish users: you can send Tweets using SMS. Avea and Vodafone text START to 2444. Turkcell text START to 2555," the company tweeted.