16/06/2025 | Writer: Defne Güzel
On May 1st, the police practically went on a rainbow hunt, and the bans gained momentum throughout the month. LGBTI+ people were targeted through numerous Family Symposiums held during May.
Violations
At Ankara University, ultranationalist (Ülkücü) groups attacked women and LGBTI+ individuals. While the messages on the wreaths sent by Pride Week Committees to Sırrı Süreyya Önder’s funeral were removed, police claimed that “being LGBTI+ is forbidden” at an exhibition themed around the Gezi Resistance. Thousands of forms of bans were directed at LGBTI+ people.
- Ban on “Queer Wedding” event at Galatasaray University: The event planned as part of GSÜ Pride Week was banned following threats. The university administration prevented students from holding the event, claiming “it was banned by the Council of Higher Education (YÖK).”
- Attack on women and LGBTI+ people at Ankara University Cebeci Campus: Ultranationalist (Ülkücü) groups attacked women and LGBTI+ individuals who wanted to make a statement titled “Year of the Family is the Year of Resistance.” Despite all obstacles, the press statement was read out.
- Wreath ‘crisis’ at Sırrı Süreyya Önder’s funeral: DEM Party Istanbul MP and Deputy Speaker of the Grand National Assembly, Sırrı Süreyya Önder, passed away on May 3. Istanbul Trans Pride Week and Istanbul LGBTI+ Pride Week also participated in the funeral and sent wreaths in his memory. Shortly after, it was seen that the messages on the wreaths sent to the funeral had been removed.
- Police obstruction of the “12 Barricades” exhibition: At the exhibition held in Barbaros Square with the theme of the Gezi Resistance, police blockaded the artworks and artists for 30 minutes. They confiscated 17 pieces for inspection. Seven photographs were deemed “inappropriate” by the police and banned. Among the confiscated pieces was a visual with the phrase “trans murders are political,” and the police claimed that being LGBTI+ is forbidden in Turkey.
- Three LGBTI+ activists detained for graffiti: The Istanbul Trans Pride Week Committee announced that at around 2:00 a.m. on May 28, three LGBTI+ rights activists were detained in Istanbul for doing graffiti. The activists were referred to the courthouse and later released.
- Anti-LGBTI+ warning from the Ministry of Family to its directorates: The General Directorate of Family and Community Services sent a letter to all directorates under the Ministry of Family and Social Services and to provincial directorates in all 81 cities, targeting LGBTI+ people. The ministry emphasized avoiding terms such as “gender,” “gender identity,” and “sexual orientation,” and called for a unified stance.
- 2025 METU and Hacettepe Pride Marches: The 13th METU Pride March began with a flag hung on the Chemical Engineering building and started in front of the Physics lawns. The march ended with a press statement in front of the main building, where a heavy police and riot control presence was noted. Private security also attempted to obstruct the march. At Hacettepe, after three days of events, students gathered for a march on May 22. They were targeted by the university’s private security unit. While the police did not allow the march, students managed to make their press statement despite all obstacles.
- Rainbow banned on May Day: LGBTI+ individuals raised rainbow flags in May Day areas to protest the declaration of the “Year of the Family,” restrictions on access to hormones, and anti-LGBTI+ legislative proposals. In Bursa, police did not allow activists from Kadın Savunma Ağı to enter the area with rainbow flags and confiscated the flags. Similar incidents occurred in Ankara and İzmir, while in Istanbul, 300 people were detained, among them, there were LGBTI+ activists.
- Anti-LGBTI+ rhetoric in Diyanet sermons: In its May 9 sermon, Turkey’s Directorate of Religious Affairs (Diyanet) targeted LGBTI+ organizations. In the May 30 sermon, it claimed that “degendering” is forbidden (haram).
- Hate campaign and investigations at Hacettepe: Following a hate leaflet on campus targeting LGBTI+ students with phrases like “perverted” and “against human nature,” a petition campaign promoting anti-LGBTI+ sentiment also began circulating. It was also reported in the press that the Hacettepe-appointed trustee initiated investigations against participants of May Day forums and those protesting Family Year events.
- Ministry of Family’s international trainings: As part of the “2025 Year of the Family” events, one of the topics in seminars organized in Germany by the ministry was titled “degendering.”
- Memur-Sen delivers 5 million anti-LGBTI+ signatures to parliament: A total of 5,293,000 signatures gathered in the “Amend the Constitution, Protect the Family” campaign were presented to Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmuş during a press statement held in the Turkish Grand National Assembly.
- Anti-LGBTI+ parliamentary question from HÜDA-PAR: After submitting a bill targeting LGBTI+ rights, HÜDA-PAR also submitted a written parliamentary question to the Ministry of Family and Social Services aimed against LGBTI+ people.
- LGBTI+ rights activist Asya Gökalp subjected to ill-treatment in prison: Asya Gökalp was arrested on the charge of “inciting hatred and enmity among the public” for allegedly calling those who made the Grey Wolves hand sign (a far-right nationalist symbol) “terrorists.” Their lawyer stated that they are undergoing cancer treatment and cannot remain in prison. Although they said they would give testimony voluntarily, they were unlawfully taken from home and arrested, and faced ill-treatment in prison.
- Trans activist Aram Kadiroğlu sentenced to five months in prison:
Kadiroğlu was sentenced to five months in prison for protesting the 2021 murders of four women. The charge is “resisting the police.” - Discrimination and ill-treatment of LGBTI+ prisoners in Aksaray Type T Prison:
Six LGBTI+ inmates at Aksaray Type T Prison, previously reported for discriminatory and abusive treatment, are facing systematic discrimination, ill-treatment, and unlawful practices. - Police raid in Diyarbakır: In an “anti-prostitution operation” carried out by the Morality Bureau, police raided shared residences of women, including trans women. Six people were arrested.
Targeting
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan declared the 2026-2035 period the “Decade of Family and Population.” Throughout May, forums, symposiums, and councils held under the theme of “family”, all repeating one another in content and speakers, continued to target LGBTI+ people.
- International Family Forum and the “Decade of Family”: Held on May 22-23, the forum became a platform for orchestrated anti-LGBTI+ rhetoric. President and AKP Chair Recep Tayyip Erdoğan declared the 2026-2035 period the “Decade of Family and Population” and framed the fight against LGBTI+ people as a struggle for freedom. Minister of Family and Social Services Mahinur Göktaş claimed that “gender-neutral ideologies target the institution of the family.”
- International Family Symposium: At the symposium held on May 31, psychiatrist Mustafa Mermer used the phrase “sexual perversion” in his speech. During the session titled “The Family from a Socio-Cultural Perspective,” Professor Dr. Adem Palabıyık from Bitlis Eren University presented a talk titled “The LGBT Example as Socio-Cultural Terrorism.”
- “Family and Media: Global Perspectives in the Digital Age” International Family Symposium: At the symposium organized by an education union (Eğitim Bir-Sen) and Ankara Social Sciences University, Minister Mahinur Göktaş again claimed that “degendering” is being imposed.”
- 7th Family Forum: In the forum themed “Protecting Nature and the Family,” the President of Religious Affairs Ali Erbaş targeted LGBTI+ people by referring to them as “deviant movements.”
- 6th Morality Council: In the final declaration of the 6th Morality Council, organized by the Institute of Islamic Thought, the Turkish Writers' Union, and Hasan Kalyoncu University’s Islamic Civilization Application and Research Center, the concept of “degendering” was again cited.
- “Heartfelt Dinner with Mothers” (Annelerle Gönül Sofrası) Program: At the event organized by the Women’s Branch of the Great Unity Party (BBP), BBP Chair Mustafa Destici called for a struggle against LGBTI+ people.
- TÜGVA’s 6th Istanbul Provincial General Assembly: TÜGVA President İbrahim Beşinci said in his speech, “We are protecting this nation from degendering, nationlessness, and godlessness.”
- President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan: Not only at the International Family Forum, but also at the International Green Crescent Federation Forum, Erdoğan referred to LGBTI+ as a “deviant movement,” repeating similar remarks at his party’s group meeting. During the “Strong Families with Mothers, Strong Turkey with Families” program, he also stated that “the necessary steps are being taken to fight LGBTI+ people.”
- AKP Deputy Chair Fatma Betül Sayan Kaya: During the Expanded Social Policies Consultation and Evaluation Meeting, Kaya used the phrase “LGBT perversion” in her speech.
- Memur-Sen President Ali Yalçın: Speaking at the May 1 event in Ankara, Yalçın targeted the “Gender Equality” course that had previously been canceled by the Ministry of National Education, criticizing the teachers’ union Eğitim-Sen for supporting it.
- HÜDA-PAR MP Faruk Dinç: During his visit to Diyarbakır, Dinç defended the anti-LGBTI+ bill his party submitted to Parliament.
- Çanakkale Governorship: Announcing the May 15 “International Day of Families” on social media, the governorship also included a “family march” in its program.
- Mayor of Trabzon Metropolitan Municipality, Ahmet Metin Genç: Participating in the “Trabzon Family Festival,” Genç declared, “LGBT is not a human right.”
- Targeting DEM Party MP Çiçek Otlu: In a parliamentary speech, Otlu demanded easier access to hormones and recognition of abortion rights. She was subsequently targeted by Islamist groups on social media for defending LGBTI+ rights and abortion.
- Targeting artist Mabel Matiz: During a performance at METU’s “International Spring Festival,” Mabel Matiz displayed a rainbow flag on stage, which received applause. They were then targeted by pro-government media.
- Targeting Muamma LGBTI+ Association: In a printed article on May 6, the newspaper Akit targeted the activities of the Muamma LGBTI+ Association.
Course of the Trials
Editor-in-Chief of kaosgl.org Yıldız Tar and LGBTI+ rights activist Erkin were released. A lawsuit was filed against the METU Pride March after three years.
- A lawsuit filed against the METU Pride March after three years: The Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office filed a lawsuit three years later against 37 people who were detained with torture and later released during the Pride March held at METU on June 10, 2022.
- Esat-Eryaman case: In the 19-year-long justice struggle, the second hearing of the case, which restarted after the Court of Cassation annulled the 2023 hearing due to the absence of the defendants’ lawyers, was held on May 22. The court upheld the 82-year prison sentence given to the defendants. Since the verdict is not final, the defendants are still not imprisoned.
- kaosgl.org Editor-in-Chief Yıldız Tar was released: Tar, who was arrested on February 21 in a case where journalistic activities were considered as “evidence,” had their case dismissed by the court for lack of jurisdiction, and the process was referred to the Constitutional Court. Tar, arrested within the scope of the Istanbul-based HDK investigation, had their file sent to Ankara. Their trial will continue in Ankara, where the court decided to release their pending trial without detention. The first hearing of the case will be on October 13.
- LGBTI+ rights activist Erkin was released: Erkin, arrested within the scope of the investigation against the Peoples’ Democratic Congress, was released along with 7 others during the hearing of the case in which they are being tried.
- 2024 Istanbul Pride March: The trial of 8 LGBTI+ activists took place on May 8. The hearing was postponed to July 10.
- Earthquake memorial lawsuit: During the press statement held by Istanbul Trans Pride Week on February 10, 2024, in front of Kadıköy Süreyya Opera House for those lost in the earthquake, the police formed a cordon and detained 11 people. One activist who chanted the slogan “Don’t forget February 6, don’t let it be forgotten” was released under judicial control. After the acquittal of 11 people, a case based solely on police testimony was filed against one activist. The hearing was held on May 13 and postponed to September 25.
Tags: human rights, women, media, life, education, family
