15/09/2026 LGBTI | Equality and Non-Discrimination
Kate Osborne (United Kingdom, SOC), the General Rapporteur for the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) on the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) persons, made the following statement today:
“I unequivocally condemn the wave of harassment, intimidation, censorship, raids and mass arrests targeting LGBTI activists on 12-13 September 2026 across Türkiye.
I am deeply concerned about those who have been detained, their families and loved ones, and for LGBT+ people across Türkiye.
The European Convention on Human Rights guarantees the rights to freedom of expression and assembly. These rights must be respected and the work of all human rights defenders needs to be protected. LGBTI rights are human rights.
The criminalisation of the promotion and protection of LGBTI rights is a violation of Council of Europe standards of equality and non-discrimination. The use of so-called ‘protection of family values’ as a justification for repression has been explicitly rejected by the European Court of Human Rights in a 2017 judgment. These actions are an attack on fundamental rights and an attempt to silence civil society.
As PACE’s General Rapporteur, I will continue monitoring the situation and call for urgent action to end the repression of LGBTI persons in Türkiye.
I am calling on the Turkish authorities to immediately release any persons detained for their defence of the rights of LGBTI persons and cease any further attacks on the civil and political rights of these human rights defenders and activists.”