Turkish government has banned all events by lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) rights groups in Ankara. LGBT rights organizations would launch a legal process against the Ankara Governor’s Office’s decision to ban all LGBT events in the Turkish capital.
The governor’s office claimed such events may cause animosity between different groups and endanger “health and morality”, as well as the rights and freedoms of others.
The ban comes after a German gay film festival by the German Embassy on November 15, the day before it was due to start. Four movies by German directors were to be screened as part of the German LGBT Film Days.
German Deputy Foreign Minister Michael Roth criticized the ban, saying “the freedom of arts and minority rights are inviolable and this should also be applied in Turkey.”
Gay pride parades have been banned in Istanbul since 2015. The first LGBT Pride March permitted by the authorities was held in 2003 in Istanbul and was conducted for 13 years until 2015.
