Report: Who are the refugees 'lost' at Europe's borders?

Source: W2eu.info

LOST AT BORDER reports on the reality of loss and death at the Greek borders. As a close friend of ours said once:

“If you are a refugee and you die nobody asks any questions. But for living somewhere, everybody is questioning you!” We want to break the silence and ask: What happened with all these people whose traces got lost?

Accidents and death at border belong unfortunately to the daily experiences of refugees trying to reach a safe haven. The European Border Control Agency FRONTEX in co-operation with national authorities are heightening and thickening the fences and walls around us, controlling and patrolling the borders and externalizing them to European neighbour states such as Turkey, Morocco, Tunisia a.o.

They have created treaties of co-operation in deportations and huge refugee detention camps at the gates of Europe. Trying to cross a number of borders, among them the ones of Fortress Europe is a huge risk of death! The numbers are shocking: more than 2,000 people died in the Mediterranean Sea only in 2011. Each single person left behind a big gap in the life of relatives and friends.

LOST AT BORDER gives the voice mainly to refugees searching and mourning for their beloved. The report was made by a group of antiracist activists from different countries who have been already involved in the search of migrants who got lost at the border between Greece and Turkey.

It can be quite difficult to find information on what has happened when somebody is missing at the border. Apart from the report we want to help and fill this information gap by a new Blog. We want to connect the relatives and friends of border victims to each other and we want to let you know and feel that you are not alone on this journey! We will never forget. We promise to overcome the murderous border regime and to continue our struggle for a welcoming Europe.

Lost at Border

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Video: Groundbreaking Turkish documentary on parents of gay children

Via Artmika




'My Child' is an independent feature documentary-in-production where parents of LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) individuals in Turkey intimately share their experiences with the viewer, as they redefine what it means to be parents, family, and activists in a conservative, homophobic, and transphobic society.

LGBTs in Turkey

'I believe homosexuality is a biological disorder, a disease. It needs to be treated.'

Public statement by Selma Aliye Kavaf, the Turkish State Minister Responsible for Women and Family (March 2010)

In Turkey, every day, LGBT individuals are subjected to various forms of discrimination and violence, some unfortunately resulting in loss of life. Such violence cannot solely be explained by conservatism and various phobias. The discriminatory laws, police violence, banning of LGBT associations, and censoring of web sites with LGBT content are only a few examples of the systematic government policies and ongoing human rights violations.

Redefining what a family is… LISTAG

Read more »

2011 round up: Part four: Transgender and intersex rights

Anna Grodzka image via Wikipedia

By Paul Canning

I'm rounding up the year in a series of posts - in which no doubt I've missed something, so please let me know what I've missed in the comments!


Transgender and intersex rights

One of the world's most progressive transgender equality laws was passed in Argentina's parliament and in the UK a plan for comprehensive changes to ensure equality for trans people was announced. Chile also passed an anti-discrimination based on gender identity law as did California and Massachusetts. But in Puerto Rico a roll-back of legal protection was proposed.

The Pole Anna Grodzka became the first transsexual MP in Europe and only the second trans parliamentarian in the world.

Germany removed the surgery requirement for legal gender change, as did Kyrgyzstan.

Pakistan's Supreme Court created a 'third gender' category, but authorities have been slow to implement it. This caused real problems for trans people during the flooding which hit the country this year as did a similar failure to follow through on legal change in Nepal.

The first trans rights rally took place in Dhaka, Bangladesh, and new trans and intersex groups appeared in Russia and in Africa and the African groups came together to meet in Uganda.

Turkey jailed trans activists for 'insulting police' but an activist won a case against police at the European Court of Human Rights. Attacks on trans people by police in Albania drew protests.

The death of trans activist Aleesha Farhana in Malaysia after courts refused to change her gender on official documents sparked mass protests and a government concession and also increased, sometimes bizarre, coverage in local media.

The first intersex mayor in the world was elected in Australia. In September, the world's first International Intersex Organising Forum took place in Brussels.

Figures released in October showed that one transgender person is murdered somewhere in the world at least every other day.

Related articles

• A Day in the Life of the Rainbow Identity Offices in Botswana (mask.org.za)
• UK Government Launches Plan for Trans Equality (care2.com)

Video: New Turkish film shatters taboos

By Paul Canning

A new Turkish film loosely based on the life of murdered Turkish gay activist Ahmet Yıldız is winning awards and opening worldwide in January.

“Zenne” (Zenne Dancer, or "dancing man, man dancer" in Turkish) won five Golden Oranges at the Golden Orange Film Festival, Turkey’s most prestigious film event. It is co-directed by M. Caner Alper and Mehmet Binay.

Yıldız was shot on leaving a Istanbul cafe in 2008. He tried to flee in a car but it crashed and he died. It is believed that he was a victim of a so-called 'honour' killing, gunned down by his father.

Yıldız had gone to police after being threatened by his family but the case was dropped. No one has been arrested for his murder.

A friend of Yildiz told the Independent:

"He could have hidden who he was, but he wanted to live honestly. When the death threats started, his boyfriend tried to persuade him to get out of Turkey. But he stayed. He was too brave. He was too open."

Turkey has a history of honour killings. A 2008 survey estimated that one person every week dies in Istanbul as a result of honour killings.

In the film, Yıldız is one of three friends. The others are Can, a belly dancer and openly gay man who is protected by his family, and Daniel, a German photojournalist who provides an outsider's perspective on Turkish attitudes to homosexuality.

Says newspaper Hürriyet:

“Zenne” aims straight at the heart of patriarchy coming in all shapes and sizes, from state-induced laws, to the treatment of gay men in the military and to hate crimes. The film comes with a twist on the prevailing honor killings that have taken and continue to take the lives of many women.

The twist is why “Zenne’s” Golden Orange success and its erstwhile inclusion in a film festival in eastern Turkey mean something a whole lot more. The Malatya International Film Festival had invited “Zenne” to be one of the eight films to be included in its national competition.

However Alper and Binay say that, uniquely, their film was asked to provide a permit from the Culture and Tourism Ministry for the Malatya festival. “Are disguised obstacles being placed in front of ‘Zenne’?” they said. The film ended up not being shown.

Censorship, particularly online censorship, is a source of growing concern in Turkey. There have also been thwarted attempts to close LGBT organisations by bureaucrats.

The film covers how gay men in Turkey, to avoid the draft, are asked to provide photographic or video evidence. Der Spiegel reported last year that the Turkish armed forces had “the world’s greatest porno archive” because of its policy.

Earlier this year, Amnesty International issued the report 'Not an illness nor a crime': Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in Turkey demand equality. It said that:

“In cases of violence within the family, protection mechanisms are not available for many individuals due to their sexual orientation or gender identity. It was frequently reported by activists that transgender women and men, gay men, but most frequently lesbian and bisexual women were subjected to various forms of violence within the family.”

Related articles

• In Turkey, how online censorship impacts LGBT (madikazemi.blogspot.com)
• Another killing of trans person in Turkey, this time a 'honour killing' (madikazemi.blogspot.com)

Turkey guilty at Euro Court on treatment of trans woman

Image via Wikipedia

Source: Today's Zaman

The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has found the Turkish government guilty of failing to carry out an effective investigation in the case of a transgender woman who was harassed by a police officer.

In the judgment, issued on Nov. 8, in the case of Esma Halat, the ECtHR ruled “by five votes to two, that there had been a violation of the procedural aspect of Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights [ECHR]. The case concerned allegations of ill-treatment in police custody.” Article 3, which refers to the prohibition of torture, states, “No one shall be subjected to torture or to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.”

Halat had complained about a police officer who took her to the Beşiktaş Police Station in İstanbul by force when she was on her way home on Oct. 21, 1999. Halat, who was exposed to physical and psychological harassment by Barış Gözen, deputy police chief of the Beşiktaş police, applied to the ECtHR after domestic remedies had been exhausted. Gözen was tried in İstanbul at the time and was found not guilty. The ECtHR ruled that Turkey should pay Halat 17,000 euros in compensation.

Related articles

• Turkey jails trans activists for 'insulting police' (madikazemi.blogspot.com)
• LGBT in Turkey: not an illness nor a crime (madikazemi.blogspot.com)

Turkey jails trans activists for 'insulting police'

By Paul Canning

Three transgender activists in Turkey were sentenced to prison yesterday, 25 October for 'resisting the police'.

The three are the founders of the Ankara-based transgender rights organization Pembe Hayat ("Pink Life"). One, Naz Gudumen, was sentenced to 1 year for "insulting the police" and 6 months for "resisting the police".

Kemal Ordek, Secretary General of Pembe Hayat said:

"We are shocked of the court rulings!.. The justice is not justice in Turkey for trans individuals; and especially for trans human rights defenders!"

Human Rights Watch and others have long been campaigning for all charges to be dropped.

Four police officers from the Esat Police Station in Ankara stopped the car in which the activists were riding at about 10:30 p.m. on May 17 2010 and accused them of intending to commit sex work. The women phoned for help, prompting 25 local human rights observers to go to the scene.

The police forced the activists out of the car, beat them with batons, kicked them and sprayed them with tear gas. Witnesses told the human rights organizations that the police screamed at the activists, "faggots, next time we will kill you!"

Police handcuffed the women, forced them to kneel, and beat their heads and legs while one policeman told them their activism would not protect them. All the women, visibly bruised, were forced into a police van and taken to the police station. Police held them in custody until the next morning.

Following a familiar pattern in Turkey, the five were speedily charged with resisting the police, before the prosecutor had concluded an investigation into their complaint of ill-treatment.

Lawyers for the three will now appeal the sentences.

Last month a Turkish government Minister held an historic meeting with the organisation.

In June, Amnesty International published ‘Not an illness nor a crime: Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in Turkey demand equality.‘ It said:

“Transgender women in particular face the greatest barriers to entering employment and are in a great many cases forced to engage in illegal sex work.”

“Nearly every transgender woman that Amnesty International spoke to in early 2011 described being subjected to extreme violence -- including sexual violence -- by police officers in police stations in previous years.”

“The issuing of fines by police officers -- using both the Misdemeanor Law and the Traffic Law -- has become the principal method of harassing transgender women.”

Last week there was another killing of a transgender person in Turkey, this time a 'honour killing'.

Tunisian Islamists offer reassurance to gays, women

Photo credit European Parliament

By Paul Canning

The newly elected Islamist-led government in Tunisia has offered reassurances to both women and gays that they will respect 'individual freedoms'.

In an interview with Spanish news agency EFE, Ennahda ("Renaissance") party spokesman Riad Chaibi said that they will not pursue the use of alcohol or punish atheism and homosexuality.

Chaibi, who spent five years in prison for his opposition to dictator Ben Ali, said that in Tunisia "individual freedoms and human rights are enshrined principles" and that atheists and homosexuals are a reality in Tunisia and "have a right to exist." According to Chaibi, in the case of homosexuals there is also "a matter of dignity, because society sees them as undervalued."

In the Tunisian Penal Code homosexual sex is punishable with imprisonment for up to three years. The US State Department 2010 Human Rights Report says that:

There was anecdotal evidence that gays faced discrimination, including allegations that police officers sometimes brutalized openly gay persons and accused them of being the source of AIDS. There were no reports of persons arrested for homosexual activity.

Chaibi also denied that his party intends to make the wearing of the veil for women compulsory. "The veil is part of belief, a religious symbol, and as such has no value if it is taken from freedom," he said.

He said that the Tunisian political, social model is closer to Muslim-majority states like Turkey or Malaysia than to Iran or Saudi Arabia. Tunisia has always been considered the most 'liberal' on social issues in North Africa.

"We want a lot [of what they have] in Turkey and to take advantage of their experience," says Chaibi of another country ruled by a democratically elected Islamist government. He defines the Turkish model as "Islamo-modernist." Chaibi admitted that the Arab world is "inward looking" but said that "you cannot force the Arab world, or anyone, to be modern."

"We will not force anyone to drink or not drink: our principle is to convince the people of the negative aspects of alcohol, or drugs, but we have no intention to force," he said, recalling how American Prohibition resulted in an increase in the consumption of alcohol.

Secularists, women's groups and other detractors have accused Ennahda of being moderate in public and radical in the mosques.

The party will be the largest part of a coalition government.

"Ennahda will be mindful not to offend its coalition partners, and also the youth who voted for it, who aspire to a certain way of life," Issaka Souare, a north African specialist at the Pretoria-based Institute for Security Studies, told AFP.

"It will need the buy-in of other members of the assembly in all decisions."

"[Ennahda] cannot afford to damage Tunisia's relations with Western countries," Souare said, pointing to tourism which represents almost a tenth of GDP.

Tunisia's neighbour, Libya, adopted Islamic Sharia law on Sunday as the basis of all the new regime's laws.

Related articles

• Profile: Tunisia's Ennahda Party (bbc.co.uk)
• Celebrating Tunisia's Islamists (andrewsullivan.thedailybeast.com)

Another killing of trans person in Turkey, this time a 'honour killing'

Source: Hürriyet Daily News

By Işıl Eğrikavuk

A recent case in which a 24-year-old transsexual was killed by her brother brings attention to whether Turkey’s infamous honor crimes also target transsexuals. Such crimes are not uncommon, a lawyer says.

Honor killings against women regularly draw unwanted headlines in the Turkish media, but the recent murder of a 24-year-old transsexual, who was killed by her older brother due to her sexual identity, has drawn attention to another angle of honor killings in Turkey.

The murder occurred in the southeastern province of Gaziantep in a hospital where victim Ramazan Çetin was being treated for a problem in her leg. Her 27-year-old brother, Fevzi Çetin, visiting Ramazan in the hospital, allegedly killed her due to societal pressure against his sibling’s appearance. “I have cleaned my honor,” Çetin said in his testimony to police.

The transsexual community of Turkey; the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender organizations, as well as some lawyers have condemned the murder, saying that it was both an honor killing and a hate crime.

“On top of recognizing our sexual identity, which is very difficult, most of us live under such fear every day. That’s why many of us leave the city we used to live in or go underground. Some could not even reveal who they were for pure family pressure,” one transsexual who went by the pseudonym Pınar told Hürriyet Daily News.

Pınar said she has not seen her family for five years after she revealed to them that she was transsexual.

“I came out when I was 18. My family lives in a small town and they are quite conservative; my father is involved with some religious sects. When I told them I was transsexual, of course they didn’t speak to me; they chose to ignore it. I was however lucky. I left home and they never bothered me. I have many friends who are threatened, especially by their brothers or fathers,” she said.

Fatih Söyle, a lawyer who specializes in hate crimes, said such crimes toward different sexual identities was not uncommon, but added that Turkish law did not mete out severe punishment for such cases.

“I was right at the court the other day and I saw that two murderers who caused a homosexual and a transsexual to die were sentenced to 13 and 25 years respectively,” Söyle said. “They were first sentenced to life in prison, but the court lowered it for their good manners in court.”

Ali Erol from KAOS GL in Turkey, an LGBT rights organization, agreed.

“This is a hate crime supported by the laws. Unfortunately even the laws support that people with different sexual identities are not tolerated,” Erol said. “The murderers of Ahmet Yıldız are still being sought.”

Ahmet Yıldız was killed in 2008 at the age of 26, allegedly by his father for being homosexual. His case is still unresolved due to the fact that his father is missing.

Gaziantep Women’s Center (KAMER) representative Aynur Yıldırım said there was no LGBT association in the province, a factor that makes life for homosexual or transsexual people much more difficult.

“Sometimes homosexuals or transsexuals who are in difficulties come to us, but there is not much we can do,” she told the Daily News.

Still, others say that the issue should not just be seen as specific to eastern Turkey.

“In almost every city, transsexuals are under the same conditions,” Erol said. “Making honor crimes specific to eastern provinces means that we ignore the real problem. More than 20 people were killed … last year due to their sexual identity.”

Related articles

• In Turkey, how online censorship impacts LGBT (madikazemi.blogspot.com)
• One trans person murdered worldwide every other day, figures show (madikazemi.blogspot.com)
• In the Philippines, anti-gay murder 'rising' (madikazemi.blogspot.com)
• In Ecuador, trans people battle violence, discrimination (madikazemi.blogspot.com)

Two steps forward .. Turkey and LGBT

Fatma Şahin

By Paul Canning

Turkey has taken one small step forward for LGBT recognition with, for the very first time, a government minister meeting LGBT representatives.

The Pembe Hayat (Pink Life) Association were invited to a meeting with civil society organizations on Wednesday 21 September to discuss violence against women with Minister of Family and Social Policy Fatma Şahin.

Belgin Çelik from Pembe Hayat told reporters following the meeting that she had submitted a proposal for the acceptance of homosexual, bisexual and transgender individuals in the new constitution that Parliament plans to draft in the coming legislative year.

Şahin encouraged the proposal, saying:

“We would like to actively work with you and your participation and suggestions will help us learn and acknowledge the problems you face.”

Pro-gay Turkish MP Aylin Nazlıaka has asked for LGBT groups to be consulted over the new constitution.

Calling on members of Parliament to handle the proposal positively, Şahin said:

"If freedom and equality is for everybody, then sexual orientation discrimination should be eliminated and rights of these [LGBT] citizens should be recognized.”

However Turkish MPs may face a problem reading any proposals. A report last week said that web access in the Turkish Parliament to the websites of various LGBT organisations is blocked and workers or MPs have to submit a written request for them to be unblocked.

Blocking of LGBT and other online content is widespread in Turkey, in May there was a huge protest against the internet “filtering” system.

According to a representative of Lambdaİstanbul.

"BTK (The Information Technologies and Communication Authority) has determined some banned words from domain names. “gay” and “lesbian” are on this list. Pembe Hayat (Pink Life) Association, an LGBT organization in Ankara, has been warned by their web hosting company saying their website might be shut down. There is no pornographic content whatsoever on Pembe Hayat’s website but they have been warned just because they use those words."

In June Amnesty International published 'Not an illness nor a crime': Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in Turkey demand equality'. It said:

“…not a single provision has been brought before Parliament to protect the right to non-discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Instead, there has been a long line of discriminatory statements by government officials from which the government has failed to distance itself or issue apologies for.”

Related articles

• In Turkey, how online censorship impacts LGBT (madikazemi.blogspot.com)

Paper: Credibility issues of LGBTI asylum seekers in Turkey

By Marta D'Epifanio

Recent research has shown how after a general acceptance of the fact that it is a human right to live out sexual orientation and gender identity and claim the refugee status on the persecution on such ground, the process to prove the genuinity of such an identity has encountered several obstacles. While usually information and reports come from English speaking countries and common law jurisdictions where the asylum procedure is run by different institutions, the UNHCR runs the refugee status determination (RSD) procedure in Turkey. Turkey has ratified the 1951 Convention and the 1967 Protocol which removed the previous limitations; however, despite many calls for the lifting of the limitation, Turkey still maintains the geographical ban created by the Refugee Convention

It was not until September 2008 that UNHCR started to include sexual orientation or gender identity as a field ‘of action’. That same year, UNHRC issued a guidance note recognizing that individuals being persecuted due to sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) should be considered to be ‘fleeing due to membership of a particular social group.’ This applies to Turkey too so that in the aftermath of the decision by the UNHCR, asylum seekers are either resettled to a third country or deported. Despite these limitations, Turkey is the recipient of the largest number of Iranian LGBTI refugees because of its position in close proximity to the Islamic Republic of Iran and because it does not require a visa for Iranians. that prevents the resettlement of non-European refugees inside the country. Non-European asylum seekers are considered as
‘temporary asylum seekers’ and are allowed by the ‘foreigners’ police to stay in the country while waiting for the assessment and decision of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

In this paper I will address the process of credibility assessment for LGBTI asylum seekers in the interviewing process by the UNHCR in Turkey, differences from earlier years and what are the indicators considered in order to ‘confirm’ a LGBTI identity.

CREDIBILITY ISSUES OF LGBTI ASYLUM-SEEKERS IN TURKEY

Related articles

• In Turkey, improvement documented in LGBT refugee processing (madikazemi.blogspot.com)
• Paper: Basis of claims and background information on LGBT asylum-seekers and refugees from Belarus (madikazemi.blogspot.com)
• Resource: UNHCR guidance note: LGBTI refugees in forced displacement (madikazemi.blogspot.com)

Paper: LGBT refugees looking for protection and safety: Challenges in refugee status determination and living conditions in Turkey.

Image via Wikipedia

By Giulia Cragnolini

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) shows particular concern towards the protection risks of Lesbians, Gays, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) individuals fleeing persecution, even though they represent a small part of the refugee claimants worldwide. As there is no place in the world where LGBT people can live without encountering problems The first challenge for LGBT applying for international protection is represented by the refugee status determination (RSD) process, as this is still an evolving area of international refugee law, ensuring protection and safety for LGBT asylum seekers and refugees is very problematic. Indeed, due to their sexual orientation and gender identity, LGBT threaten established gender norms that rigidly shape every society and are rooted in prejudices

The first challenge for LGBT applying for international protection is represented by the refugee status determination (RSD) process, as this is still an evolving area of international refugee law, ensuring protection and safety for LGBT asylum seekers and refugees is very problematic. Indeed, due to their sexual orientation and gender identity, LGBT threaten established gender norms that rigidly shape every society and are rooted in prejudices.

In particular, due to the intimate nature of LGBT claims and the difficulty that examiners can have to fully understand them, LGBT people might experience particularly hard time to have their instances recognized. The complexity of this process is explained in this paper with reference to UNHCR legal instruments, scholars contributions and legal decisions. The focus is mainly on gays and lesbians claims, as they constitute the majority, resulting in the more developed jurisprudence. Where information is available, limited reference is made to bisexual and transgender people, recognizing that specific studies are needed in the future.

While hosted in the country of asylum, LGBT might continue to face discriminations in their daily life, as in the case of Turkey. After fleeing persecution in their countries they find themselves in an environment hostile towards LGBT people that constitutes an "unsafe heaven" for them. LGBT asylum seekers and refugees residing in Kayseri as well as non-governmental organizations (NGOs) confirm the harsh living conditions of this community in Turkey. Indeed, while LGBT asylum seekers are likely to find international protection from UNHCR, they are not able to find safety, both in physical and psychological terms.

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Refugees Looking for Protection and Safety. Challenges in Re...

Related articles

• In Turkey, improvement documented in LGBT refugee processing (madikazemi.blogspot.com)
• Paper: You are not gay enough; Proving sexual orientation and gender identity within the asylum regime; the credibility challenge In varying cultural expressions of sex and gender (madikazemi.blogspot.com)

In Turkey, improvement documented in LGBT refugee processing

Source: ORAM

Organization for Refuge, Asylum and Migration (ORAM), a U.S.-based non-profit organization that helps refugees fleeing sexual and gender-based violence worldwide, issued a new report showing significant progress in how the UN Refugee Agency treats lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) refugees in Turkey, and urging the government of Turkey to curb the increasing anti-LGBTI violence there.

"Unsafe Haven" is co-authored with Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly – Turkey, the country’s leading refugee advocates. The report draws on in-depth interviews with 108 LGBTI refugees, most from Iran, who fled to Turkey for safety after being persecuted in their home countries because of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

An update on a 2009 report by the same name, "Unsafe Haven" shows how ORAM’s groundbreaking work with partner organizations, including the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) in Turkey, has led to dramatic improvements in the treatment of LGBTI persons in the refugee system – most notably by reducing their wait times for legal status and resettlement to the U.S. and other safe countries. At the same time, the report depicts an increased environment of hostility toward sexual minorities – including 45 murders last year alone – and urges Turkey to do more to protect them.

“LGBTI refugees are already among the most vulnerable asylum seekers in Turkey. Amidst increasing threats and violence against LGBTI people, we see a beacon of hope in the steps local and international organizations are taking to protect this population. However, much more needs to be done,” said Neil Grungras, Executive Director of ORAM.

Among its key recommendations, the report urges the Turkish government, civil society and the international community to take action to:

• Enact legislation protecting LGBTI people from hate crimes and discrimination;
• Treat LGBTI refugees with sensitivity and respect; and
• Increase resettlement of LGBTI refugees to safe countries.

Unsafe Haven

Read more »

In Turkey, how online censorship impacts LGBT

Image via Wikipedia

Source: Mashallah News

By Cihan Tekay  and Jay Cassano

In May, when Turkish middle classes poured out on the streets in numbers rarely seen to protest against the internet “filtering” system, we came across a short but strong statement from the LGBT community of Istanbul. This statement called for the Turkish LGBT community to join the demonstration against internet censorship.

While many protestors out on the streets interpreted the censorship plan as an attack of their personal freedoms, the LGBT activists framed it as a part of the systematic violation of their rights and as another way to render their community invisible.

The statement referenced many aspects of how internet censorship affects the lives of LGBT people in Turkey. For example, even prior to this new internet censorship plan, it was impossible to access certain LGBT websites at internet cafes. This is significant to the LGBT community because these cafes are frequented by youths who either do not have personal computers with internet access at home or do not want to browse LGBT sites on their family computers.

Bearing in mind the legal attempt to shut down Lambdaistanbul in 2007, a volunteer-run LGBT organization in Istanbul responsible for organizing the yearly pride parade, we stopped by Lambdaistanbul’s headquarters and interviewed a volunteer who wished to remain anonymous.

Q: Could you start by telling us what Lambdaistanbul is and what it does?

A: Lamdaistanbul is an association which defends LGBT people’s rights. Turkish laws don’t include non-discrimination policies toward LGBT people. Thus, the LGBT minority can be subject to discriminating situations. Because of that, Lambdaistanbul was established approximately in 1993. In 2007, there was an attempt to shut down Lamdaistanbul. It was not accepted by the courts and Lamdaistanbul continues to operate legally today.

The most important goal of Lamdaistanbul is to foster lesbian, gay, bisexual and transsexual people’s self-confidence. We organize coming out meetings, we inform people about their political rights, we make sure they are not ashamed of who they are. I don’t want to use an orientalist discourse, but, as you know, in a place like Turkey, gays have problems with how they are represented in the media. RTÜK (Radio and Television Supreme Council) takes certain decisions. For example, those TV series that openly broadcast homosexuality or gay characters are penalized on the ground that it is against morality and the Turkish family structure.

Q: How has internet censorship affected Lambdaistanbul specifically?

Read more »

Video: In Turkey, another trans woman murdered

Source: TGEU

With great sadness and anger have we learned that yet another trans woman has been killed in Turkey on 31st of July 2011. This is the info received today from TGEU member organisation Pembe Hayat:

dear friends,

as regards to the murder of didem, today we have more information. the murderer is a 26 years old man, who met with didem on facebook and agreed to have sex by paying her - didem is a sex worker. interestingly, the murderer is a fugitive soldier, named o.f.k.

he was caught by the police just after the murder after the high level of noise coming from the victim. he confessed to the police, "i thought that she was a woman, but she was a travesti. after learning this, i killed her."

tomorrow, we will have a silent protest in front of the apartment of didem together with the trans community in istanbul at around 18.00 p.m. in findikzade district of istanbul.

here is the link, where you can find the video taken just after the murder, where you can see the murderer and the trans friends of didem.

Our thoughts go out to Didem's close ones and the Trans and sex worker communities in Turkey.

These transphobic murders and attacks have to stop! Impunity for transphobic murders and attacks needs to be ended now!

Related articles

• In Vienna protests against removal of trans Turkish asylum seeker (madikazemi.blogspot.com)
• In Uganda, trans woman desperately seeks police protection (madikazemi.blogspot.com)
• LGBT in Turkey: not an illness nor a crime (madikazemi.blogspot.com)

Video: A gay Arab, Middle Eastern 'It gets better'

Via Tolerance Leads to Mutual Respect of ALL Arabs

Assem Al Tawdi, an Egyptian human rights defender and an education specialist (in Arabic & English).



Ferras Al Qaisi, a singer/songwriter of Arab origin, with a special message that "It Gets Better".

Read more »

Video: Discrimination and violence against LGBT in Turkey

Source: AmnestyFrance

• More about Amnesty's report.

Related articles

• "Ahmadinejad! We're right here!" LGBT Iranian asylum seekers march in Ankara (madikazemi.blogspot.com)
• Amnesty launches campaign for imprisoned Cameroonian gay man (madikazemi.blogspot.com)

LGBT in Turkey: not an illness nor a crime

Image via Wikipedia

Source: Today's Zeman

By Orhan Kemal Cengiz

The situation of sexual minorities - lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) - in Turkey is one of the most problematic areas with respect to their rights.

Their very existence is denied, ignored and stigmatized. They are the number one victims of hate crimes. They are discriminated against in every aspect of life in Turkey. While they suffer the most serious human rights violations, public awareness about their problems has always remained very low and shallow.

Amnesty International in London has just published a report on the situation of sexual minorities in Turkey. The report, “‘Not an illness nor a crime': Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in Turkey demand equality,” [see below] makes a reference, amongst other things, to the infamous remarks by State Minister for Women and Family Affairs Selma Aliye Kavaf, who had declared that homosexuality is an illness.

I hope the report will create some awareness about the problems of the LGBT community in Turkey. As soon as I received a copy of the report I read it quite enthusiastically and highlighted some facts and conclusions made by Amnesty International. I would like to share my highlights on the report with you:

“…not a single provision has been brought before Parliament to protect the right to non-discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Instead, there has been a long line of discriminatory statements by government officials from which the government has failed to distance itself or issue apologies for.”

“Homophobic and trans-phobic views are common in the media.”

Read more »

In Vienna protests against removal of trans Turkish asylum seeker

Rally for Yasar 8 June was attended by members of the many Austrian groups who are supporting her

UPDATE, 15 June: TransX report that Yasar was released from prison today pending a reconsideration of her asylum application.

8 June a protest was held outside the Hernals prison where Turkish trans asylum seeker Yasar Öztürk is being held pending removal after being denied asylum.

She came from Turkey and asked for asylum in Austria in September 2009. She was abused by police and beaten by "transphobic rowdys" in Turkey. In a knife attack, she was seriously injured by a lung puncture. The police refused to accept her complaint. The attack has left her blind in one eye.

Yasar is at risk of being murdered (“honour” killing) by her family. In Turkey, she had to go into hiding, says TransX, the Austrian transgender group who are supporting her,and if she is removed and her family finds her she will be murdered. Some of Yasar's close friends were assassinated in recent years, they say.

Her supporters have called another protest from Monday 13 June, at 6.30pm again outside the prison.

Update: 350 people attended this lively protest. Another protest was planned for today in Innsbruck.

Yasar sent a message to the 8 June protest:

"Thanks a lot to everybody who came. Not only for me, also for those who are confronted with violence, have been killed, such demonstrations should be done. No one should die. Let's love humans as humans, let's love animals as animals. Don't we treat people like animals. Greetings to all and many thanks."

"Hepsine tesekkür ederim.Sirf benim için degil, dünyada magdur olan, siddete magruz kalan insanlara, ölenlere sahip çikalim. Kimse ölmesin, insanlari insan olarak sevelim.Hayvanlari hayvan olarak sevelim. Insanlara hayvan muamelesi yapmayalim. Beni ve benim gibi insanlari destekleyen herkese kucak dolusu sevgiler."

Yesterday the Turkish LGBT group Pambe Hayat delivered a protest letter to the Austrian embassy in Ankara. And an appeal to the ECHR was denied. Her legal representative says that the Interior Ministry does have the power to stop the removal, which is scheduled for 15 June.

Seyhan, a Turkish trans refugee in Austria 

Edited to add: a fresh claim for asylum has been submitted and will be considered on Tuesday, 14 June. Austria has given asylum before to a Turkish transgender woman. Seyhan (pictured right) received asylum, according to TransX, "very quickly". She has been at the forefront of supporting Yasar and spoke at the protest.

• For example protest letter and email addresses for officials see previous post.
• Audio: Interview with Jo Schedlbauer of TransX (in German)

Austria preparing to remove Turkish trans asylum seeker

Poster showing murdered Turkish trans activist Ebru Soykan

By Paul Canning

Austrian transgender group TransX reports that a trans-woman from Turkey is being threatened with removal by the Austrian authorities.

Her case was being advocated for her by the Austrian Association for Human Rights (Verein Menschenrechte Österreich). TransX are calling for it to be reviewed on the basis that her application for asylum to the Austrian Ministry of Interior was "messed up" by the Association.

Yasar Öztürk came from Turkey and asked for asylum in Austria in September 2009. She was abused by police and beaten by "transphobic rowdys" in Turkey. In a knife attack, she was seriously injured by a lung puncture. The police refused to accept her complaint. The attack has left her blind in one eye.

Yasar is at risk of being murdered (“honour” killing) by her family. In Turkey, she had to go into hiding, says TransX, and if she is removed and her family finds her she will be murdered. Some of Yasar's close friends were assassinated in recent years, they say.

Yasar has lived as a woman for many years. During puberty she developed female forms and there is strong suspicion that she is actually intersex.

Human rights organisations have issued numerous reports on violence against transgender people in Turkey, including from police, and the lack of a response from the Turkish government. ILGA-Europe's submission to the European Community's 2011 Progress Report on Turkey said:

"Hate crimes target particularly transgender people in Turkey. It doesn’t therefore come as a surprise that amongst all 47 CoE member states, Turkey ranks first for trans murder cases. Only in 2010, 7 trans people were murdered in Turkey."

"Police harassment and abuse of transgender women is a widespread practice in Turkey. Physical violence, psychological abuse, rape and unjustified fines are common practice in the police forces against transgender women in Turkey." 

"While on a fact finding trip to Turkey, ILGA-Europe documented the case of police violence against 5 transgender women in Ankara on 17 May, 20102. After the incident the 5 trans women were charged with “resistance to police authority”. However, none of the police officers responsible for the violence were hold accountable." 

TranX held a protest in 2009 outside the Turkish Embassy in Vienna against hate crimes against transgender people.

Verein Menschenrechte Österreich managed her case with the asylum authorities. Her application for asylum was rejected at first instance. The legal representation of the Verein Menschenrechte Österreich missed the opportunity to appeal and, according to TransX, "messed up the resumption of the proceedings". TransX say that Yasar may not have told her whole story from the beginning, due to shame (which is common with LGBT asylum cases but is seen by authorities as effecting their credibility). A new legal advocate for her has just been instructed.

29 May Yasar was arrested in Vienna. An attempt to prevent deportation due to Article 3 ECHR (ban on refoulement) failed.

Her removal is due to take place 15 June.

TransX says:

"After all legal remedies have been exhausted, it is now necessary to bring the case to the public to generate as much pressure as possible. We will inform the press and also create pressure on officials."

They are organising a demonstration for 8 June at 5pm in front of the prison where Yasar is being held on Hernalser Gürtel / Breitenfelder Gasse, 1080 Vienna

Her case is being supported by RKL - Rechtskomitee LAMBDA, Jean-Pierre Garbade (Avocat, Genève), Trans Austria, Die Grünen andersrum and Im Kontex.

Federal Councillor Jennifer Kickert, LGBT spokeswoman for the Austrian Green Party said:

"A deportation to Turkey means Öztürk is in acute danger to life and limb. Here Austria has to respect non-refoulement bid that no one should be returned to a country where her / his life is endangered. I say clearly: Yasar Ozturk must stay." 

The Green Party MEP and co-chair of the LGBT Intergroup in European Parliament, Ulrike Lunacek, said:

"If Austria's agreement with the core values of the European Convention on Human Rights, the Geneva Convention and the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights is ​​not only rhetoric, there must be no removal of Yasar Öztürk. Europe must ensure the protection of transsexuals and lesbians and Gays from persecution in their countries of origin through the right of asylum - no ifs and buts. Because, unfortunately, transphobic hate crime is regularly perpetrated in Turkey, Yasar must not be deported."

Protest-Mails can be sent to:

• Ministry of Interior: ministerbuero@bmi.gv.at (Attention of Johanna Mikl-Leitner)
• Fremdenpolizei (border police): bpd-w-frb@polizei.gv.at (Referent Ziegler)

Petitions can be sent to:

• President of Austria: heinz.fischer@hofburg.at (Dr. Heinz Fischer)
• President of the Austrian parliament: barbara.prammer@spoe.at (Attention of Barbara Prammer)
• Mayor of Vienna: michael.haeupl@spoe.at (Dr. Michael Häupl)

• Example protest letter (RTF)

For more information e-mail: jo@transgender.at Phone: +43 / 680 / 24 14 748

Related articles

• Video: Turkish film explores transsexual lives in Istanbul (madikazemi.blogspot.com)
• Austria deports African gay footballer (madikazemi.blogspot.com)
• Nigerian gay footballer deported by Austria has gone underground; Austrian police charge his counsellor with 'promoting an illegal stay' (madikazemi.blogspot.com)
• New map of murders of transgender people around the world (madikazemi.blogspot.com)

Video: “Ahmadinejad! We’re right here!” LGBT Iranian asylum seekers march in Ankara

By Paul Canning

Turkish LGBT group Kaos GL reports that a group of Iranian LGBT asylum-seekers took part in the fourth March against Homophobia and Transphobia, held 22 May in Ankara. Amongst their slogans: "Ahmadinejad, we’re here!"; "Iranian queers will not keep silent anymore!"; and "Iranian queers, we’re altogether now!."

They are not allowed to live in Ankara so a shuttle bus was organised from the town of Kayseri to facilitate their participation in the March. It is the first time that LGBT Iranians have participated in a Turkish gay pride march.

The group also carried the old Iranian flag during the March attached to the rainbow flags.

Iranian LGBT on the Ankara march

Kaos GL organised another first 12 May, bringing together LGBT asylum seekers and relevant Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) at a Refugee Workshop jointly with Amnesty International Turkey.

The other participants of the Workshop included representatives of Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly, Human Rights Joint Platform, Positive Living Association, Multeci-Der (Refugees’ Association, Human Rights Association, Human Resource Development Foundation and Human Rights Agenda Association and Mazlum-Der (Association of Human Rights and Solidarity for Oppressed People) and Human Rights Research Association were also invited, yet did not participate in the workshop.

One asylum seeker told the workshop

"We cannot find a job and even if we do, we cannot get our fees. Access to healthcare is really difficult; we cannot get any medicine but they do give away the drugs once they’ve expired."

"Lack of a command of the language is a rather serious problem. We are alienated not only by the public, but also by other asylum-seekers. Trans-gender asylum-seekers are exposed to severe incidents of physical violence and harassment both at their workplaces and on the street."

"The conditions of the satellite towns we’ve been sent to are really poor. I cannot tell my real reason for asylum; I say it’s on political grounds. UNHCR does not accept bisexuals."

A report by Human Rights Watch published last December detailed the problems which Iranian LGBT asylum seekers face in Turkey.

Because of their resettlement in small, conservative cities like Kayseri, LGBT asylum seekers suffer discrimination and abuse at the hands of local townspeople, difficulties with Turkish government authorities including the Turkish police, and they also have problems with locally recruited and sometimes other UNHCR staff.

As a result of the workshop a report on whether Turkey's 'Draft Law on Foreigners and International Protection' provides sufficient guarantees for the rights of LGBT asylum-seekers - Turkey has removed 'sexual orientation' from the Draft Law.

As well as the workshop, Kaos GL held a pioneering conference last week, the 'Regional Network against Homophobia' initiative, with the participation of people from the Caucasus, the Middle East and the Balkans. Iranian LGBT also attended..

Related articles

• Iranian activists: evidence needed on bad treatment of refugees returned to Tehran (madikazemi.blogspot.com)
• Major new report documents situation of Iranian LGBT, in Iran and in exile (madikazemi.blogspot.com)