02/06/2023 | Writer: Yıldız Tar
The harassment calls lasted for two days. The person who said his name was Mehmet Yılmaz even read out to Buse her TR ID number. It is yet to be found out where he got all this information about Buse and her family.
With the end of the second round of the presidential elections, the election period in Turkey is now over. The open hostility towards the LGBTI+ community shown by Cumhur İttifakı1 during the election campaigns continues to heighten concerns for human rights in the country.
Trans activist Buse Kılıçkaya has received threatening calls in a political atmosphere where AKP brings the discriminatory constitutional amendment plan that it shelved due to the earthquake back on the agenda and where Yeniden Refah2 says that it would increase its efforts to shut down LGBTI+ associations.
He called her sister, saying "your sibling is dead"
Kılıçkaya, one of the founders of the Pink Life Association and one of the victims of the Eryaman-Esat case, was traumatized by a phone call from an unknown number on May 19, at a time between the two election rounds. The person who said his name was Mehmet Yılmaz first derided Kılıçkaya on the phone. On the night of the same day, the same person called Buse's sister this time. It is still not known how he got her sister's phone number.
The person who said his name was Mehmet Yılmaz introduced himself as a doctor and said "Your sister Buse Kılıçkaya was stabbed in the street and was brought to the city hospital. Despite all efforts, she could not be saved. She lost her life. Yon need to come and pick up her body.”
"I'm Recep Baba3"
Stunned, her sister reached out to their other siblings and Buse. Buse unblocked the phone number to understand the caller's intentions. This time, the same person insulted Buse saying "faggot, transvestite" and added "I am Recep Baba, Kılıçdaroğlu we are coming4".
The harassment calls lasted for two days. The person who said his name was Mehmet Yılmaz even read out to Buse her TR ID number. It is yet to be found out where he got all this information about Buse and her family.
Translation: Kerem Selçuk
1 (Eng. The People’s Alliance) an electoral alliance in Turkey formed under conservative, and national conservative ideologies.
2 (Eng. The New Welfare Party) an Islamist political party as the successor of the Welfare Party banned in 1998
3 (Eng. Father Recep) referring to the first name of Erdoğan and his being perceived as the father of the nation by his supporters
4 Throughout the election campaigns, Kılıçdaroğlu and the main opposition Nation Alliance were severely attacked by Erdoğan and The People’s Alliance by saying they are LGBTI+ supporters.
Tags: human rights, women
