Nov 22, 2023. Posted by Balkan Periscope - Hellas
Turkish police on Nov. 20 intervened the press statement organized by İzmir
Bar Association in front of the association building within the scope of Trans
Day of Remembrance because the group was “unfurling LGBTI+ flags.”
The police told the group, "This flag is forbidden, I cannot allow the flag. You should also consider the sensitivities of the society... This is about that piece of cloth, you cannot set a bad example to the society.”
Despite the police officers’ claims, Turkey did not ban any of the flags
that are used by the LGBTI+ community. There is also no official ban on LGBTI+
symbols even though some state institutions have been trying to impose a de
facto ban due to government’s crackdown on the marginalized community.
Although the president of the Bar Association said that there was no such
ban, a brawl broke out between the lawyers and the police due to the insistence
of the police on the existence of ban.
After the brief brawl, the lawyers read the press statement and said,
"It is the common responsibility of all of us to work together to put an
end to hate crimes, to build a violence-free society and to work together so
that each individual can live freely and fulfill their potential."
In southern Mersin province, the police also attacked trans activists
carrying flags and attempted to detain them. The other participants of the
march saved the activists who were facing police brutality, according to reporting of
LGBTI+ magazine KaosGL.
Trans Day of Remembrance is an annual observance held on Nov. 20 to honor
and remember the lives of trans individuals who have lost their lives due to
acts of transphobic violence.
Turkey's LGBTI+ community is often targeted by hate speech of government
officials including President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and radical Islamists. While
the crimes committed against them go unpunished, many LGBTI+ individuals say
that the country is getting more and more difficult to live in.
According to Transgender Europe's (TGEU) Trans Murder Monitoring project,
65 trans individuals were killed between 2008-Sept. 2023 in Turkey.
The ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) had a particularly firm
stance against LGBTI+ communities since the Gezi Park protests of 2013 and the
coup attempt of 2016. The annual LGBTI+ pride parade in Istanbul and other
major Turkish cities has been banned since 2016, and those that have marched
regardless have been met with police violence.
Islamist groups have been organizing anti-LGBTI+ hate rallies and marches
with state support since 2022 in order to ban "LGBTI+ propaganda."
Gazete Duvar