As the 31st Istanbul LGBTI+ Pride Week kicks off in Turkey amid bans and police violence, government officials, including the Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya, are coming down heavily on Pride Week and LGBTI+ people.
In response to criticism of police violence against trans activists from the pro-Kurdish Green Left Party MP for Istanbul Özgül Saki, Yerlikaya said, “Throughout history, our heroic police have fought against ‘occupationist mentalities’ and those who disregard the values of our society.”
Saki had previously expressed her disappointment with the police’s intervention in the Trans Pride march, commenting in a press release on Sunday morning, “The Trans Pride march in Taksim could not take place because the police intervened like an occupying force.”
Following the minister’s remarks, ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) Deputy Chairman Hamza Dağ also responded to Saki’s press release, saying, “We will not give these creatures who mistake hostility to our values for ‘pride’ any leeway. This is not representing the nation, it’s an act of betrayal.”
On Sunday, police prevented LGBTI+ people from gathering in Istanbul’s Taksim for the Trans Pride march. The police barricaded all the streets leading to Taksim, and detained people attempting to get to the square.
Unable to get to Taksim Square, the crowd gathered nearby to issue a press statement, following which the police arrested a number of the participants.
The ruling bloc intensified its hostile rhetoric against LGBTI+ people in the lead-up to Turkey’s May elections, and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan specifically targeted the LGBTI+ movement along with the pro-Kurdish opposition in his balcony speech after his re-election.
Pride Marches have been banned in Turkey every year since 2019, in violation of a clear ruling from the European Court of Human Rights, and the police have consistently resorted to violence when intervening in demonstrations.
