Ankara court reverses gay pride ban at ODTÜ campus
An Ankara court has reversed a ban on a gay pride march that was imposed by ODTÜ rectorate in May 2019. The court said that the rectorate's decision had no legal basis as the all-embracing ban enacted by the Ankara Governor's Office in 2017 had been already lifted.
Duvar English
An Ankara court has found the ban imposed on a gay pride march planned at Middle East Technical University (ODTÜ)'s campus in 2019 as “unlawful.”
The Ankara 7th Administrative Court said that the ODTÜ administration's ban decision had no legal basis.
In May 2019, ODTÜ rector banned the student march and grounded his decision on the all-embracing ban by the city’s authorities enacted two years earlier.
In November 2017, the Ankara Governor's Office prohibited all LGBTI-related activities from taking place, citing concerns over public order and fears such events would "provoke reactions" in society.
Although the general ban was lifted through a court decision on Feb. 21, 2019, ODTÜ rector still refused to permit the march on the university campus, which led to protests among students at the time.
ODTÜ has a long-running LGBTI organization, The Solidarity Club, which formed in 1996. It has held gay prides on the campus since 2011.