.jpg)
Free our siblings and stop using the protection of children to serve your authoritarian agenda!
Saying that the situation for queer people in Türkyie is extremely alarming would be an understatement: Over the weekend, Turkish authorities raided gay bars, association offices, and homes of LGBTQI activists in major cities including Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir, and Mersin.
Minister of Justice Akın Gürlek stated that “the operation encompassed 162 individuals, 9 associations and 13 businesses across 15 provinces”. Over 60 people were detained, with their personal belongings seized, including people from our Member Organisations.
Hours before the raids, the authorities had blocked websites and social media accounts of LGBTQI organisations, media platforms, and student groups; a reminder that digital interference is often a precursor to state sponsored violence.
Despicably labelled “My Family is Safe”, the operation notably used alleged evidence that “children and underage youths were being inappropriately influenced on issues relating to sexual orientation and gender identity”, among other morality-related offences evidence.
This unprecedentedly coordinated and violent operation is a significant escalation of the increasing repression against our rights in Türkiye these past two years. These deeply disturbing measures are a direct and unlawful attack on our freedom, and yet another attempt to dismantle LGBTQI civil society by using the protection of children and youths to satisfy an authoritarian agenda.
We stand in full solidarity with LGBTQI organisations and human rights defenders in Türkiye, whose work is vital for the safety and protection of our communities. We call for the immediate release of all persons detained and for the authorities to stop criminalising legitimate civil society activity and international cooperation.
As the operation is still ongoing, we are closely monitoring the situation and will keep you updated on further developments and ways you can support.
In the meantime, we urge you and the international community to give visibility to the situation and send a strong signal that we stand with the queer community in Türkiye, especially with our siblings who are detained, and that we will keep on supporting them in any way we can until all of them are free.