Eskişehir Governor’s Office bans LGBTI+ themed events for a month in province

Duvar English

The Eskişehir Governor's Office on July 14 took the decision to prohibit all open-air events associated with the LGBTI+ community within the province, citing the imperative of safeguarding "public morality."

The governor’s office used discriminatory language in the official statement and said, “Some LGBTI associations and groups announced that they want to organize events in some provinces, including our province, under the name of "Pride Week" at the end of June through media and social media platforms. Such events include some attitudes and behaviors against public morality and may lead to a reaction in society.” 

The authorities stated that some people and groups with “radical views” reacted against the events through various media platforms and added, “These events are open to all kinds of provocations that may disrupt public peace and public order due to possible conflicts among groups with different views in society.” 

The governor’s office stated that the ban decision was also taken to protect those attending the events and “establish peace and security of the public, public health, public morality, and the protection of the rights and freedoms of others.” 

In this regard, the authorities banned all the open-air events organized by the “LGBTI+ groups and those who are in line with them”  for one month in order to “ensure the maintenance of public peace and public order, prevent the commission of crimes, protect public health, public morals, and the security of life and property of the citizens.”

Reacting against the ban, Eskişehir Pride Week organization committee stated, "As it has been seen in the past years, our struggle is bigger than the governor's ban! We are not silent, we are not afraid, and we do not obey!"

During the first Eskişehir Pride March organized in 2021, police beat and detained 16 people, but a Turkish court acquitted participants later. The governor's office also banned the second march organized in 2022, and police detained 10 people.

In response to the lawsuit challenging the aforementioned prohibition in 2022, a Turkish court ruled in favor of its legality, citing "the purported threat of an orchestrated ISIS attack targeting LGBTI+ events within the nation" as the rationale behind the decision.