Image: (APA/AFP/KEMAL ASLAN)
Despite the ban, numerous people gathered on Sunday to demonstrate for the rights of gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people (LGBTQ) – not in the center of Istanbul in the European part, but on the Asian side of the city.
Until recently, the organizers had kept the location of the event secret from the public. The participants waved rainbow flags and ran through the streets whistling, as footage showed. The governor’s office did not give a reason why the event was not approved. It simply said that “illegal groups” had called for an unauthorized protest march. The area around the central Taksim Square was temporarily closed to traffic and pedestrian traffic was controlled.
The government has been trying to prevent the annual Pride parade for years. Last year, numerous people were arrested. Homosexual relationships are not prohibited in Turkey. However, government officials and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan repeatedly express open hostility towards LGBTQ people.
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Source: Nachrichten
