PROJE HAKKINDA.

On the anniversary of 12 September, we woke up to news of a large-scale operation targeting LGBTI+ organizations and human rights defenders, among them member organizations of our Network. Carried out under the name “Ailem Güvende” (“My Family Is Safe”) and coordinated by the chief public prosecutor’s offices of Ankara, İstanbul, İzmir, Aydın and Mersin, the operations have involved raids on the offices of LGBTI+ organizations and the homes of human rights defenders, and the arrest of numerous people. We are following with grave concern this targeting of the LGBTI+ movement as a whole.

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It is unacceptable for legitimate and lawful work in the field of LGBTI+ rights to be criminalized by being placed side by side with accusations such as “facilitating prostitution”, “obscenity” and “drug offences”. We likewise regard the handling of associations’ income and expenditure records as a serious interference with freedom of association. As the law requires, these records are registered, documented, open to inspection and declared to the competent authorities. Yet through MASAK (Financial Crimes Investigation Board) reviews they have been stripped of context, circulated and served up to the public in a way calculated to create, on its own, a suspicion of “criminality”. The aim of this approach is to discredit LGBTI+ organizations and to restrict freedom of association, a right guaranteed by the binding international conventions to which Türkiye is a party, by the Constitution and by domestic law.

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Defending human rights and LGBTI+ rights is not a crime. Our friends, with whom we share this struggle for rights, must be released immediately and unconditionally, and all pressure, targeting and interference aimed at obstructing the existence of LGBTI+ people, their freedom of association and their human rights work must end at once. We stand with human rights defenders.

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Solidarity Network For Human Rights Defenders – Turkey

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May 17 Association [17 Mayıs Derneği], Civil Rights Defenders, Association for Monitoring Equal Rights [Eşit Haklar için İzleme Derneği], Migration Monitoring Association [Göç İzleme Derneği, GöçİzDer], Truth Justice Memory Center [Hakikat Adalet Hafıza Merkezi], Human Rights Association İstanbul Branch [İnsan Hakları Derneği İstanbul Şubesi], Human Rights Agenda Association [İnsan Hakları Gündemi Derneği], Women’s Culture, Art and Literature Association [Kadın Kültür Sanat Edebiyat Derneği, KASED], Women for Women’s Human Rights [Kadının İnsan Hakları Derneği], Women’s Time Association [Kadın Zamanı Derneği], Kaos GL, Media and Law Studies Association [Medya ve Hukuk Çalışmaları Derneği, MLSA], Association of Lawyers for Freedom [Özgürlük için Hukukçular Derneği], P24 Platform for Independent Journalism [Punto24 Bağımsız Gazetecilik Derneği], Research Institute on Turkey [RIT], Rosa Women’s Association [Rosa Kadın Derneği], Civic Space Studies Association [Sivil Alan Araştırmaları Derneği], Social Policy, Gender Identity and Sexual Orientation Studies Association [Sosyal Politika, Cinsiyet Kimliği ve Cinsel Yönelim Çalışmaları Derneği, SPoD], Star Women’s Association [Star Kadın Derneği], Nonviolence Center [Şiddetsizlik Merkezi], Tarlabaşı Community Center [Tarlabaşı Toplumunu Destekleme Derneği], Foundation for Society and Legal Studies [Toplum ve Hukuk Araştırmaları Vakfı, TOHAV], Gender Equality Solidarity Network [Toplumsal Cinsiyet Eşitliği Dayanışma Ağı, AĞ-DA], Türkiye–Europe Culture Forum [Türkiye-Avrupa Kültür Forumu], Turkey Litigation Support Project [Türkiye İnsan Hakları Davalarına Destek Projesi, TLSP], Human Rights Foundation of Türkiye [Türkiye İnsan Hakları Vakfı], Amnesty International Türkiye [Uluslararası Af Örgütü Türkiye Şubesi], University Queer Research and LGBTI+ Solidarity Association [Üniversiteli Kuir Araştırmaları ve LGBTİ+ Dayanışma Derneği, ÜniKuir], Life Memory Freedom Association [Yaşam Bellek Özgürlük Derneği], Romani Godi – Roma Memory Studies Association [Romani Godi – Roman Hafıza Çalışmaları Derneği], Citizens’ Assembly [Yurttaşlık Derneği], Lambdaistanbul LGBTI+ Solidarity Association [Lambdaistanbul LGBTİ+ Dayanışma Derneği]

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For the latest information and updates, please visit the Kaos GL website:

https://kaosgl1.org/en/single-news/information-simultaneous-operations-targeting-the-lgbti-movement