29/04/2025 | Writer: Kaos GL
The police who attacked the "Youth Standing Up" march in Ankara detained a trans woman with torture. Following the circulation of violent footage on social media, the governorship defended the torture by referring to her as a "so-called woman."
The Governorship of Ankara justified the police attack on the "Youth Standing Up" march held in Ankara on April 25 with transphobic rhetoric.
During the protest on Konur Street, police attacked a group of 300 people and detained 30 individuals with torture. After the footage of a trans woman being tortured during her detention surfaced on social media, the Governorship of Ankara released a statement defending the abuse with transphobic language.
In its statement, the Governorship said:
"It has been determined that some press and social media outlets have shared images showing 'male police officers detaining a so-called female individual, with part of her body visible.' Upon reviewing the footage and conducting an investigation, it was found that the person detained is a male individual named M.B., born in 1998, who covered their face with a red scarf during the protest and was wearing jeans, a leather jacket, and a t-shirt. However, during the detention process, due to the individual's resistance to the police, it was observed in the footage that they were wearing women's underwear."
LGBTI+ organizations released a joint statement titled “Transphobia and Torture Are Human Rights Violations!” in response to the police torture and the transphobic statement by the Governorship of Ankara.
The full statement by the organizations is as follows:
“On the night of April 25, a trans woman who was peacefully exercising her right to assemble and protest against anti-democratic developments on Konur Street in Ankara was subjected to police violence during her unlawful detention. This violence is not just an attack on her body and identity, but on all of us. The so-called statement made by the Governorship of Ankara is nothing more than an attempt to cover up and legitimize this deliberate act of violence through scapegoating. This is not the first time we have seen a trans woman targeted for her identity and existence. We have not forgotten our friends who were almost lynched in the streets of Bornova simply for existing, nor the police raids on our homes in Bayram Street.
We remember and will not stay silent about the attempted massacres in Esat-Eryaman, where gangs supported by the police attacked with knives and sticks, while the state, instead of protecting us, organized the violence against us! Now, once again, they try to legitimize violence by humiliating a trans woman through torture in custody, subjecting her to strip searches, exposing her body, and criminalizing her identity. Because they know: Trans existence is one of the greatest threats to the regime of hate they have built. Because we are not just surviving; we are living, resisting, organizing, and embracing each other.
The acts of choking, dragging, and use of disproportionate force by law enforcement are clearly crimes of mistreatment and torture. The perpetrators of this torture are not only those who carry it out, but also those who turn a blind eye, cover it up, and incite it! By disclosing private information about the detainee’s gender identity, their personal dignity and fundamental rights have been blatantly violated. The Governorship’s use of transphobic, sexist, and criminalizing language is a product of a systematic and ongoing hate policy directed at the entire trans community. This stance not only legitimizes torture but encourages it and becomes complicit in the crime! Enough is enough! This is not an isolated incident. This is systematic violence organized by the state. We will not remain silent in the face of torture, public humiliation, discrimination, and state-sponsored hatred! We demand justice. We know the perpetrators. We do not accept hate. Trans rights are human rights!”
The signatory associations
May 17 Association, 20 Kasım Nefret Suçlarıyla Mücadele Association, Ankara Gökkuşağı Aileleri Association (GALADER), Hevi LGBTI+ Association, Kaos GL Association, Lambdaistanbul LGBTI+ Solidarity Association, Families of LGBTs in İstanbul Association (LİSTAG), Mersin 7 Colours LGBTI+ Solidarity Association, Muamma LGBTI+ Education Research and Solidarity Association, Özgür Renkler LGBTI+ Solidarity Association, Pink Life LGBTI+ Solidarity Association, Social Policy, Gender Identity and Sexual Orientation Studies Association (SPoD), UniKuir Association.
Tags: human rights, life
