On November 9, President Erdogan, in a television speech, criticised a municipality run by the main opposition party for a policy supporting LGBTI persons. Nine days later, the Ankara governor banned all LGBTI-related events in the province for an indefinite period, including a film festival supported by the German Embassy. This followed an editorial in a popular daily newspaper entitled “Support for the perverts by the German Embassy”. The governorship listed “social sensitivities and sensibilities” and “protection of public health and morality” amongst the reasons for the ban.
Film showings and discussion panels in some other towns have been shut down. There has also been a marked increase in hate speech against LGBTI people in the media and online.
Recent years have seen the banning of all public demonstrations in support of LGBTI rights in Turkey. These latest developments take Turkey one step closer to the complete suppression of the right to expression and assembly in support of LGBTI persons.
We are gravely concerned at this growing intolerance towards LGBTI persons. We call upon the authorities to ensure that the Ankara ban is reversed immediately and that the right of LGBTI persons to freedom of expression and assembly is restored.