Threat to student clubs at Boğaziçi University

25/09/2024 | Writer: Kaos GL

Student clubs displaying rainbow flags at their booths during Boğaziçi University’s orientation days were threatened by the police.

Photograph: Ünikuir

According to a report by Ünikuir, student clubs and the Student Representative Council (ÖTK) at Boğaziçi University, who displayed a rainbow flag with the BÜLGBTİ+ logo—an organization shut down in 2021—at their booths during orientation on September 23, were threatened by security forces.

According to the statement issued by the ÖTK, the rectorate officials warned the clubs that if the flags were not removed, their stands would be shut down. The ÖTK's statement is as follows:

“Today, on the first day of orientation, clubs and societies that displayed the flag of pride on their tents and tables, declaring that they belong not to a single club but to every club, were individually threatened by the trusteeship. They were warned that their stands would be removed if the flags were not taken down. As if this wasn't enough, the clubs and societies were further threatened with censorship, being told, ‘Plan your next events accordingly.’

We do not hide, we do not run away; as students, we will not submit to pressure in our clubs, just as we resist in every area. We will continue to display our flags and carry out our planned activities. We know these outrageous threats hold no weight and that we will overcome all obstacles through solidarity. You should know this too.”

Feminist Boğaziçi also issued a statement on their social media today, reporting that the rainbow flag they displayed at their booth was “stolen” by plainclothes police officers:

“On the third day of orientation, our rainbow flag was stolen by plainclothes police. When our friends attempted to retrieve the flag, they were confronted by both plainclothes police and the university's private security (ÖGB), who sought refuge in the trusteeship. Long live our feminist struggle against the ÖGB-police-trustee collaboration! The rainbow flag cannot be banned!”

Tags: human rights, education