Riot police in Turkey used tear gas and rubber bullets at the country’s annual parade on Saturday in an effort to deter the incident. This is the latest in a series of fights against LGBTQ groups.
The Washington Post reported that a battalion of police officers searched the marchers and tried to stop them from gathering on Istiqlal Road. which is a shopping and tourism center
The governor of Istanbul reportedly refused to grant a permit for the parade, which has been banned for the past seven years after being held since 2003.
Hundreds, however, waved rainbow flags as they walked through the city̵
7;s Beyoglu district, the Post reported.“Rainbows are not a crime — discrimination is,” marchers chant. According to newspaper reports
The violent action against the LGBTQ parade comes during a difficult year for Turkish gay and transgender people. Advocacy groups have identified discrimination from senior officials, including: President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the country’s interior minister posted a report.
Both officials reportedly attacked LGBTQ groups when students protested at a prestigious university in Istanbul. arguing that the LGBTQ community does not exist.
“There is no such thing as LGBT, this country is a nation, has a soul and goes into the future with these values,” Erdogan said during a speech to members of his party, according to the Post.
The Turkish government also removed itself from the Istanbul Convention earlier this year, the Post reported. The convention is an EU treaty that works to prevent violence against women.
the government said is drawing participation from the treaty. because it is “Normalize homosexuality,” according to the post.
The Governor’s Office of Turkey’s capital Ankara announced in 2017 that it had banned public activities related to LGBT issues “to ensure peace and safety”.
