At least 50 people detained by police at Istanbul Pride event
A Pride event in Turkey in 2023 (Getty Images)
At least 50 people were detained this weekend at a banned Istanbul LGBTQ+ Pride event, organisers have said.
The event, which took place on 28 June, went ahead despite a ban imposed by the local authorities and a lockdown of all the city’s main gathering points. Iron barriers were installed around Istanbul’s famed Taksim Square, while subway transport in certain areas was also restricted.
The Turkish Journalists’ Union has also confirmed that one of the people who were detained was Muberra Unsal, who holds a press card.
“Journalists covering the Istanbul Pride March faced unlawful interference again this year. Despite repeatedly identifying herself as a journalist, Unsal was also taken into custody,” the union posted to X.
According to France24, LGBTQ+ protestors gathered in a number of neighbourhoods around Istanbul in order to carry out the demonstrations.
At one location, they chanted: “My love, today isn’t over yet. In fact, we’re just getting started. We’re not giving up. We’ll keep taking to the streets from every corner we’re in.”
Being a member of the LGBTQ+ community is not outlawed in Turkey, after same-sex sexual activity was decriminalised in 1858. Trans people have also had the legal right to change gender, albeit only with gender-affirming surgery, a medical examination and court permission, since 1988.
However, there are currently no other LGBTQ+ protections in place in the country, and the community is often targeted by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
In 2023, Erdoğan listed LGBTQ+ people as one of the “biggest threats against the family,” and blamed homosexuality for the country’s declining birthrate.
Turkey was recently ranked as one of the worst countries to be LGBTQ+ in Europe in ILGA-Europe’s 18th annual Rainbow Map, which was released in May.
The country came in at number 47 out of 49 for its LGBTQ+ rights laws and protections, and scored higher than only Azerbaijan and Russia.
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