LESBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL AND TRANSGENDER (LGBT) RIGHTS IN TURKEY (2005)
AN OVERVIEW OF ISSUES
PREPARED BY Kaos GL
ANKARA, TURKEY
September 2005
Part 1 – Kaos GL’S Demands
Part 2 – Introduction
Part 3 – History of LGBT Movement in Turkey
Part 4 – LGBT Community’s Concerns about New Turkish Penal Code
Part 5 – Two Cases Regarding the Transgenders in Turkey
Part 6 – LGBT Issues in Turkish Media
Part 7 – Problems of Lesbians in Turkey
PART 1 – KAOS GL’S DEMANDS:
Kaos GL urges the Turkish government and EU officials to take the necessary actions to:
• Amend the Turkish Penal Code in order to ban and criminalize discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
• Amend the Turkish Penal Code in order to remove the article penalizing consensual sexual relations between young people of 15 to 18 years of age.
• Amend the “obscenity” article in the Turkish Penal Code by clearly defining what constitutes “obscenity”.
• Revise its laws and eliminate vague terms such as “exhibitionism,” and “offenses against public morality,” which lead to subjective interpretation and can be used to harass and persecute people (especially transgenders) based on their sexual orientation or gender identity.
• Develop programs for transgender people which will open employment possibilities outside the sex work trade and will help to ease the discrimination they are facing.
• Ease the restrictive requirements for sex reassignment surgery (the Turkish Civil Code allows sex reassignment surgery since 1988).
• Change military policy to admit homosexuals into the armed forces; allow conscientious objection, if a compulsory military service is deemed necessary; and to end all humiliating medical examinations to depict whether an individual is gay or not.
Kaos GL is hoping that EU legislation will press Turkey for legislative and policy-related changes on issues of sexual orientation and gender identity.
PART 2- INTRODUCTION
Turkey has always been somewhere between the West and the East. Its culture includes both Western and Eastern values. These values sometimes clash with each other. A striking example of this clash is the struggle for human rights by Turkish lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders (LGBT). Providing solutions to the problems of the Turkish LGBT community will be one of the litmus tests for the future of the democracy in Turkey, as well as inclusion in the European Union.
There are reasons to be both optimistic and pessimistic regarding the fate of Turkish LGBT people.
As seen in “Part 3- The History of the LGBT Movement in Turkey” of this report, the LGBT movement in Turkey is still in its early stages. One can easily notice that the Turkish LGBT movement is becoming more vocal and active. Especially since the 1990s, the momentum has been steadily increasing.
In 2005 there are two very active and vocal Turkish LGBT organizations: Lambda Istanbul in Istanbul and Kaos GL in Ankara. There are also smaller LGBT groups established all over Turkey.
Kaos GL
Founded in the capital of Turkey, Kaos GL has been one of the pioneer LGBT groups in Turkey since the early 1990s. Kaos GL (with the support of Lambda Istanbul) has been very active during the preparation of the new Turkish Penal Law in 2004 (refer to “Part 4 –LGBT Community’s Concerns about New Turkish Penal Code”). For the first time in the Turkish Republic’s history, a group of LGBT activists were present in the Parliament demanding their rights.
Kaos GL’s other contribution to the Turkish LGBT movement is the magazine it has published since 1994. In November 1999, when it received a warning from the Security Department Press Office, Kaos GL Magazine registered as a legal publication and has been published, as such, since December 1999.
Kaos GL gained legal NGO (non-governmental organization) status in July 2005, becoming the first legally registered LGBT organization in Turkey.
Lambda Istanbul
Established in Istanbul, Lambda Istanbul has achieved many successes regarding the concerns of Turkish LGBT people. As indicated in Part 3- The History of the LGBT Movement in Turkey of this report, Lambda Istanbul organized many events to bring attention to the problems of the LGBT community. In June 2003, Lambda Istanbul celebrated its tenth Gay Pride week and the anniversary of its establishment. At that occasion, for the first time in Turkey’s history, about 50 gays and lesbians marched in a public demonstration down Istiklal Street in Istanbul, and issued a press statement at the end of the parade. Since then, members of Lambda Istanbul have marched outside, every year, with an increasing number of participants.
Influence of Internet
The Internet has had a tremendously positive effect. LGBT people, especially ones in rural areas, are able to communicate with one another more frequently, openly and anonymously. The Internet helps LGBT individuals and organizations to mobilize their forces and enables them to establish contact with the outside world. It can easily be concluded that the Internet will continue to influence the future of the Turkish LGBT movement in a positive way.
Problems of the LGBT Community
Of course there is also a negative side to this story. Although it is legal in Turkey to be lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender, discrimination and persecution are also prevalent. It is too early to be optimistic about the future when it comes to LGBT rights.
There is still massive discrimination in both the public and private sector. It is very difficult for someone to press charges when he/she faces discrimination based on sexual orientation; Turkish laws do not recognize crimes of discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.
Transgenders, who are often the most visible part of the LGBT community, continue to face discrimination and physical harassment by society. Just like gays and lesbians, they have little legal recourse. Although security forces have been very harsh to transgenders in the past, with the considerations regarding human rights by the European Union (EU) and the Turkish public, the situation is slowly improving.
European Union
Despite these difficulties, the prospect of EU membership has had a tremendously positive impact to the daily lives of all Turkish people including the LGBT community. It is essential to remember that Turkey is the only country with a Muslim majority that provides hope when it comes to LGBT rights. In a report prepared by Kaos GL previously, it was found that there are only six Muslim countries in which being a lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender is legal and these countries are: Turkey, Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan. It is no coincidence that of these Turkey, Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Azerbaijan have strong ties with the rest of European community.
It is hoped that the prospect of membership talks between Turkey and EU will continue to have a positive impact on the struggles of Turkish LGBT people. Kaos GL along with Lambda Istanbul are hoping that during the membership talks, the demands of the Turkish LGBT (see “Part 1 – Our Demands”) people will be taken into account in order to spread the values of democracy to every Turkish citizen.
PART 3 – HISTORY OF LGBT MOVEMENT IN TURKEY
Click here to read the History of LGBT Movement in Turkey
PART 4 – LGBT COMMUNITY’S CONCERNS ABOUT NEW TURKISH PENAL CODE
The new Turkish Penal Code, which does not recognize the existence of Turkish lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT) people, went into effect on June 1, 2005.
None of the demands Kaos GL and Lambda Istanbul brought up during their face-to-face meetings with the Justice Commission members were considered. Turkish lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders want to live in Turkey without being outlawed, stigmatized and discriminated against.
Turkish LGBT People’s Demands:
The Turkish LGBT Community urges the government to take the necessary action to amend the Turkish Penal Code to:
• Ban and criminalize discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
• Remove the article penalizing consensual sexual relations between young people of 15 – 18 years of age. (which conflicts with the Children's Rights Protocol and the Global Declaration on Human Rights, both ratified by Turkey)
• Amend the “obscenity” article by clearly defining acts of “obscenity”
Existing Situation in Turkey:
Turkish lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders, are trying to explain to the larger community that having the freedom to live as a lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgendered individual is a human rights issue.
Although, in Turkey, being a gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender was never legally a “crime” nor a “disease”, the institutions of the Turkish government have always used pressure, intimidation and sometimes violence against the Turkish LGBT community.
The Turkish media cover the issues and demands of the LGBT community as if they are cheap magazine news. At the same time the ambiguity of the newly accepted laws punish LGBT people by not recognizing them.
Kaos GL’s Story about Turkish Penal Code:
On May 24, 2004, representatives of Kaos GL and Lambda Istanbul met with Mr. Orhan Erarslan, a member of the Turkish Parliament and a member of the Justice Commission. During the meeting, the speaker of the LGBT groups demanded the inclusion of the lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders among the groups that are protected by the Turkish Penal Code. The speaker also emphasized that sentences for crimes perpetrated against gays should not be reduced by the court. He added that laws should be further revised to prevent discrimination against LGBT people.
On January 29, 2004, the Justice Commission decided to add “sexual orientation” to the “discrimination clause” which would prosecute people with a 6-month to 1-year jail term if they discriminate against others based on sexual orientation.
On July 6, 2004, Turkish Parliamentary Justice Commission overruled prison terms for ‘sexual orientation’ discrimination after Justice Minister Cemil Cicek claimed that discrimination based on gender or sexual orientation are the same things.
On September 15, 2004 representatives from Kaos GL, Lambda Istanbul and women rights organizations, joined the first Parliamentary Session in reviewing new Turkish Penal Code. The LGBT community demanded that the Justice Commission put “discrimination based on sexual orientation” back into the Penal Code draft (which did not happen).
Since that time, in order to explain the demands and worries of the LGBT people about the new Turkish Penal Law, Kaos GL and Lambda Istanbul issued numerous press statements and forwarded them to the members of the Justice Commission, Turkish MEPs and the Turkish public.
What Will Happen if the Demands of Turkish LGBT People Are Not Realized?
• Kaos GL has been publishing a political LGBT magazine since 1994. In 1999 during a trial about the magazine, the prosecutor decided the magazine was harmful to minors. This decision put Kaos GL Magazine into the same category as a pornographic publication. Therefore, Kaos GL Magazine was sold in a covered envelope for several months until the judge ruled in favor of the magazine. Will the Turkish Justice Commission and the Parliament put the demands and thoughts of Turkish LGBT people in an envelope again? Or, if that is not enough, will LGBT individuals be put in prison?
• The current situation stigmatizes and demeans the existence of LGBT people and finds their sexuality “immoral and unnatural”. Will the revision of the laws produce more stigmatization and discrimination because LGBT individuals are not legally considered?
• In the work place, LGBT people are not hired, they face obstacles to move up, or they are laid off because of their sexual orientation. Which law or regulation will protect LGBT employees from discrimination based on sexual orientation?
• LGBT government officials are forced to deny their sexual orientation; otherwise they risk termination of their contract with the government.
• Lesbians face violence and oppression. They are forced to get married or murdered because they are lesbians.
Turkish government officials claim that the penal code legislation was drafted to increase rights and freedoms and bring the Turkish justice system in line with European Union standards. What kind of freedom will the new Turkish Penal Code bring if LGBT people’s voice is shut out? Their sexuality will be stigmatized as something unnatural, their relationships won’t be recognized and they’ll be fired from their jobs because of their identity.
Revision and harmonization of all Turkish laws or regulations pretend that lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders do not exist. This is both not based on reality, but also not based on equality and justice.
PART 5 – TWO CASES REGARDING THE TRANSGENDERS IN TURKEY
Special Cases – Zeki Muren and Bulent Ersoy
There are two names that are well known to the Turkish public when the issue is transsexuality: Bulent Ersoy and Zeki Muren.
These people are important because they are popular musicians accepted by the Turkish society. They both raised questions of gender identity and sexual orientation, the former by stretching the roles acceptable for male dress and behavior; the latter by being open about her transgendered identity.
The “Ulker Street” Incident
Before 1980, there used to be a place called “copluk” (dumping ground) in Taksim, Istanbul. Transgender people worked in the houses there. On September 12, 1980, with the military coup, the “copluk” was banned. Transgender people of that area began to look for brothels. They mostly began to work on the streets, in their homes and clubs in Beyoglu, Istanbul. These places, after some time, turned out to be insecure, leading them to find safer places to live in. The Cihangir section has become the final destination of transgender people. They mostly lived in Abanoz Street of Cihangir, until they were forced to leave this street in late 1980s. Later on, they moved to Ulker Street.
Ulker Street is located in Cihangir, Istanbul behind The Marmara Hotel. It is estimated that about 70% of the transgender population used to live on that street before an infamous police expulsion.
The operation took place during the HABITAT summit in 1996. The police, along with the residents of the neighborhood, forced the transgender inhabitants to leave their homes. The police forces led the operation with the support of the inhabitants of Ulker Street and the media, who mostly spoke for the ones with more power. The aim of the operation was to get rid of transgender people. Although there was not one particular reason which started the operation, the dominant elements were as follows:
• Beyoglu was in the process of reconstruction (for the HABITAT summit)
• Economic and political interests of various groups
• Dominant culture’s attitude towards sub-culture (leaving them out)
• Not being able to solve the economic/social/biological/cultural problems of transgender people (which lead to violation) and pretending that they did not exist.
One of the reasons of the forced removal was to make transgendered people’s lives, which had become visible and accepted in the neighborhood, invisible and non-existent for the HABITAT summit, an international gathering which would bring Istanbul into the spotlight.
PART 6 - LGBT ISSUES IN TURKISH MEDIA
In this section, the Turkish media, concerning the LGBT issues, will be examined in three stages.
In the first period, (early 80’s) the homosexual man, the “gay” was something not fully understood. Gays were portrayed as a stereotype. A distinction between a homosexual man and a transgender was not made. Anyone “not normal” was considered to be homosexual.
The inside pages of the newspapers often used homosexuals as subjects to news of “murder, perversity and immorality.” Homosexuality was shown as an issue to entertain the public. This was also the period when AIDS became known as a disease of homosexuals. AIDS was breaking news, along with homosexuality.
While this was the case in the first period, in the second period (1990’s) the attitude of the media towards the LGBT people gradually began to change. Despite the differences of their sexual orientation and gender identity, all gay men (effeminate or not) and transgenders were considered as “homosexuals”. In other words transgenderism meant homosexuality.
Lesbianism, on the other hand, was sometimes placed in the news, but this was really rare. Other times, lesbianism was used as subjects for pornography.
The lesbians, gays and bisexuals were able to hide themselves from the public; no-one cared what they were as long as they stayed in silence, but the transgenders were visible to everyone. Whether they came out to the public or not did not matter, the media could find them easily.
In 1994, Kaos GL Magazine, the first LGBT magazine of Turkey, was published. Now, the LGBT population had begun to form its own organizations. Following this The Independence (Hurriyet), the biggest newspapers in Turkey, began to publish news about the LGBT community without altering them in order to turn them into subjects for entertainment for the public.
Starting in the early 2000s, the third period marks the beginning of a totally changed attitude both by the media and the LGBT community in Turkey. The LGBT people now choose not to run away and hide from the media. Instead, they communicate directly with the media to express themselves. The fight of the LGBT individual may now be seen in the media, rather than the portrayal as a “pervert” or a stereotype.
Today, things have changed drastically, compared to these three periods. Now one can see gays and lesbians on TV, discussing their concerns and asking for their rights. Both the concepts and the terminology have changed: the “homoseksuel” or the “homo” of the 80s has changed into “gey” or “escinsel”. This suggests that the society’s point of view and the perception of LGBT people have changed for both the media and the public.
PART 7- PROBLEMS OF LESBIANS IN TURKEY
The most important problem of lesbians living in Turkey is perhaps the difficulty of coming out. Even though lesbianism (along with gays and transgenders) is not considered a crime and not forbidden by law in Turkey, it’s very hard to come out because of the fact that discrimination against sexual orientation is not forbidden. During the discussions about the New Turkish Penal Law, the LGBT organizations like Kaos GL and Lambda Istanbul made campaigns with feminist organizations in order to make discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation a crime. Yet, the article making discrimination against sexual orientation a crime has been removed from the draft by the instruction of the Minister of Justice. Turkey still does not have any LGBT rights. (see “Part 4 –LGBT Community’s Concerns About New Turkish Penal Code”)
Education and Work Life
In Turkey, because of some religious and cultural facts, the education level of women is low compared to that of men. Since most women are not as educated, The number of women who have a chance to have a career is less then men.
Unemployment rate is high in Turkey and men are more likely to occupy the available jobs. By recent legal arrangements, obligatory education has been extended from five to eight years for both sexes. It is very hard for women who went through only obligatory education to find a job. They can only find under-paid jobs in metropolitan areas with almost no social security. Because only people who had a prior job can benefit from unemployment insurance, women, who mostly deal with housework or unregistered house oriented jobs, cannot access this benefit. Even the women who have economical independence are not allowed to live alone, without their families, unless they are married. Most women are forced to marry because of societal and economic pressure. Consequently many lesbians are forced into marriage. There has been a recent case that can give an idea of the degree of violence to which lesbians are exposed. In that case, a husband who killed his wife’s girlfriend, because of the fact that she was a lesbian, was given a diminished punishment for “unjust provocation”.
Family and Psychiatry
Some lesbians who come out to their families are punished in several ways. Some are not allowed even to go out and some families force them to go to psychiatrists in order to be treated. Contrary to the acceptable professional rules, some of the psychiatrists accept homosexuality as an illness and try to rid gays and lesbians of their sexual orientation. Kaos GL has some projects regarding this issue and is currently providing workshops in order to raise the understanding of psychiatrists regarding LGBT issues and to educate them that being a lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender is not an illness.
Government’s Attitude about Lesbians’ Problems
Turkish government provides neither positive programs to employ women, nor shelters for lesbians who are subjected to violence. Although some women’s shelters still exist, most have been closed due to financial problems.
Challenges in Work Life
Even working lesbians cannot come out in work places because the law does not forbid discrimination against sexual orientation. Being a lesbian is not forbidden by law but there are some articles in labor laws which allow the employees to fire people based on immorality. If a person is fired because of the fact that she/he is gay, the employee can claim that she/he has a right to fire the worker because she/he leads an immoral life.
In such a case, only the judge who works on that particular case can decide if that person’s life-style is immoral or not. At this time, there is no sample case. It is unknown what would happen if such a case occurs. If the judge is influenced by the pressure of religious and cultural beliefs that being a lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender is immoral, she/he can arrive at a decision that it is an immoral act. If such a decision is approved by the Supreme Court, then that decision will become a rule of legal argument. Due to such pressures, most LGBT workers don’t come out at their work places. This enhances the problem of invisibility and thus delays social transformation.
In a sample case in 1996, the Supreme Court decided to give the custody (guardianship) of a child to the father, because the mother was a lesbian who was accused of leading an immoral life.
Religion and Women’s Status in Community
One of the reasons that make coming out a major challenge is religion. In Islam, homosexuality, as well as premarital sex, is a sin. Because of these facts, women’s sexuality is rarely spoken in families and community.
The prevailing culture in Turkey is based on fear of women’s sexuality which forces them to live with men. That is why it is very hard for a woman to accept herself as a lesbian and to build a lesbian life. Women in Turkey represent the “honor” of their families and community. Sometimes, even women living alone are regarded as prostitutes. Women do not feel safe when walking in the street or sometimes in their homes. The community does not allow women to form self-confidence. They are expected to obey men, their families and community. Maybe the most important problem in Turkey is that a person is seen as a woman or man, well before being seen as a human being. Gender roles have an enormous pressure on individuals, especially on women. Under such circumstances, lesbians are exposed to discrimination for both their gender and sexual orientation.
Distortion and Ignorance of Mainstream Media
Turkish mainstream media mentions LGBT issues but they mostly mention male homosexuality and not lesbianism. Mainstream media systematically presents male homosexuality as a marginal phenomenon which belongs to only famous people and artists. The visible lesbians in Turkey mostly belong to upper socio-economic and cultural classes because their economic freedom allows them to be out. That’s why lesbians who belong to lower socio-economic and cultural classes are rarely visible and not reflected in the media at all. As a consequence, lesbianism is considered to be an upper class phenomenon.
The political struggles and campaigns lesbian women pursue are not mentioned in mainstream media, unless they are distorted, because they are not seen as popular news. Media tries to represent lesbianism as a marginal phenomenon and this makes it impossible for lesbians to find role models.
Deficiencies in Consciousness Raising and Solutions:
The feminist movement is not strong enough in Turkey and the government does not support it. Women are not conscious enough about feminism; thus their awareness of lesbianism is very limited.
Unfortunately there are Woman Studies Programs only in five universities in Turkey. The lesbian and heterosexual women attending Woman Studies Programs are more conscious about lesbianism. LGBT people think that supporting such studies will contribute much to awareness-raising of a larger community.
Although it would be useful to make the necessary legal arrangements for LGBT rights, active promotion of women’s independence, by empowering them economically, socially and culturally is as important as providing legal rights.
PREPARED BY Kaos GL
ANKARA, TURKEY
September 2005
Part 1 – Kaos GL’S Demands
Part 2 – Introduction
Part 3 – History of LGBT Movement in Turkey
Part 4 – LGBT Community’s Concerns about New Turkish Penal Code
Part 5 – Two Cases Regarding the Transgenders in Turkey
Part 6 – LGBT Issues in Turkish Media
Part 7 – Problems of Lesbians in Turkey
PART 1 – KAOS GL’S DEMANDS:
Kaos GL urges the Turkish government and EU officials to take the necessary actions to:
• Amend the Turkish Penal Code in order to ban and criminalize discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
• Amend the Turkish Penal Code in order to remove the article penalizing consensual sexual relations between young people of 15 to 18 years of age.
• Amend the “obscenity” article in the Turkish Penal Code by clearly defining what constitutes “obscenity”.
• Revise its laws and eliminate vague terms such as “exhibitionism,” and “offenses against public morality,” which lead to subjective interpretation and can be used to harass and persecute people (especially transgenders) based on their sexual orientation or gender identity.
• Develop programs for transgender people which will open employment possibilities outside the sex work trade and will help to ease the discrimination they are facing.
• Ease the restrictive requirements for sex reassignment surgery (the Turkish Civil Code allows sex reassignment surgery since 1988).
• Change military policy to admit homosexuals into the armed forces; allow conscientious objection, if a compulsory military service is deemed necessary; and to end all humiliating medical examinations to depict whether an individual is gay or not.
Kaos GL is hoping that EU legislation will press Turkey for legislative and policy-related changes on issues of sexual orientation and gender identity.
PART 2- INTRODUCTION
Turkey has always been somewhere between the West and the East. Its culture includes both Western and Eastern values. These values sometimes clash with each other. A striking example of this clash is the struggle for human rights by Turkish lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders (LGBT). Providing solutions to the problems of the Turkish LGBT community will be one of the litmus tests for the future of the democracy in Turkey, as well as inclusion in the European Union.
There are reasons to be both optimistic and pessimistic regarding the fate of Turkish LGBT people.
As seen in “Part 3- The History of the LGBT Movement in Turkey” of this report, the LGBT movement in Turkey is still in its early stages. One can easily notice that the Turkish LGBT movement is becoming more vocal and active. Especially since the 1990s, the momentum has been steadily increasing.
In 2005 there are two very active and vocal Turkish LGBT organizations: Lambda Istanbul in Istanbul and Kaos GL in Ankara. There are also smaller LGBT groups established all over Turkey.
Kaos GL
Founded in the capital of Turkey, Kaos GL has been one of the pioneer LGBT groups in Turkey since the early 1990s. Kaos GL (with the support of Lambda Istanbul) has been very active during the preparation of the new Turkish Penal Law in 2004 (refer to “Part 4 –LGBT Community’s Concerns about New Turkish Penal Code”). For the first time in the Turkish Republic’s history, a group of LGBT activists were present in the Parliament demanding their rights.
Kaos GL’s other contribution to the Turkish LGBT movement is the magazine it has published since 1994. In November 1999, when it received a warning from the Security Department Press Office, Kaos GL Magazine registered as a legal publication and has been published, as such, since December 1999.
Kaos GL gained legal NGO (non-governmental organization) status in July 2005, becoming the first legally registered LGBT organization in Turkey.
Lambda Istanbul
Established in Istanbul, Lambda Istanbul has achieved many successes regarding the concerns of Turkish LGBT people. As indicated in Part 3- The History of the LGBT Movement in Turkey of this report, Lambda Istanbul organized many events to bring attention to the problems of the LGBT community. In June 2003, Lambda Istanbul celebrated its tenth Gay Pride week and the anniversary of its establishment. At that occasion, for the first time in Turkey’s history, about 50 gays and lesbians marched in a public demonstration down Istiklal Street in Istanbul, and issued a press statement at the end of the parade. Since then, members of Lambda Istanbul have marched outside, every year, with an increasing number of participants.
Influence of Internet
The Internet has had a tremendously positive effect. LGBT people, especially ones in rural areas, are able to communicate with one another more frequently, openly and anonymously. The Internet helps LGBT individuals and organizations to mobilize their forces and enables them to establish contact with the outside world. It can easily be concluded that the Internet will continue to influence the future of the Turkish LGBT movement in a positive way.
Problems of the LGBT Community
Of course there is also a negative side to this story. Although it is legal in Turkey to be lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender, discrimination and persecution are also prevalent. It is too early to be optimistic about the future when it comes to LGBT rights.
There is still massive discrimination in both the public and private sector. It is very difficult for someone to press charges when he/she faces discrimination based on sexual orientation; Turkish laws do not recognize crimes of discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.
Transgenders, who are often the most visible part of the LGBT community, continue to face discrimination and physical harassment by society. Just like gays and lesbians, they have little legal recourse. Although security forces have been very harsh to transgenders in the past, with the considerations regarding human rights by the European Union (EU) and the Turkish public, the situation is slowly improving.
European Union
Despite these difficulties, the prospect of EU membership has had a tremendously positive impact to the daily lives of all Turkish people including the LGBT community. It is essential to remember that Turkey is the only country with a Muslim majority that provides hope when it comes to LGBT rights. In a report prepared by Kaos GL previously, it was found that there are only six Muslim countries in which being a lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender is legal and these countries are: Turkey, Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan. It is no coincidence that of these Turkey, Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Azerbaijan have strong ties with the rest of European community.
It is hoped that the prospect of membership talks between Turkey and EU will continue to have a positive impact on the struggles of Turkish LGBT people. Kaos GL along with Lambda Istanbul are hoping that during the membership talks, the demands of the Turkish LGBT (see “Part 1 – Our Demands”) people will be taken into account in order to spread the values of democracy to every Turkish citizen.
PART 3 – HISTORY OF LGBT MOVEMENT IN TURKEY
Click here to read the History of LGBT Movement in Turkey
PART 4 – LGBT COMMUNITY’S CONCERNS ABOUT NEW TURKISH PENAL CODE
The new Turkish Penal Code, which does not recognize the existence of Turkish lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT) people, went into effect on June 1, 2005.
None of the demands Kaos GL and Lambda Istanbul brought up during their face-to-face meetings with the Justice Commission members were considered. Turkish lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders want to live in Turkey without being outlawed, stigmatized and discriminated against.
Turkish LGBT People’s Demands:
The Turkish LGBT Community urges the government to take the necessary action to amend the Turkish Penal Code to:
• Ban and criminalize discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
• Remove the article penalizing consensual sexual relations between young people of 15 – 18 years of age. (which conflicts with the Children's Rights Protocol and the Global Declaration on Human Rights, both ratified by Turkey)
• Amend the “obscenity” article by clearly defining acts of “obscenity”
Existing Situation in Turkey:
Turkish lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders, are trying to explain to the larger community that having the freedom to live as a lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgendered individual is a human rights issue.
Although, in Turkey, being a gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender was never legally a “crime” nor a “disease”, the institutions of the Turkish government have always used pressure, intimidation and sometimes violence against the Turkish LGBT community.
The Turkish media cover the issues and demands of the LGBT community as if they are cheap magazine news. At the same time the ambiguity of the newly accepted laws punish LGBT people by not recognizing them.
Kaos GL’s Story about Turkish Penal Code:
On May 24, 2004, representatives of Kaos GL and Lambda Istanbul met with Mr. Orhan Erarslan, a member of the Turkish Parliament and a member of the Justice Commission. During the meeting, the speaker of the LGBT groups demanded the inclusion of the lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders among the groups that are protected by the Turkish Penal Code. The speaker also emphasized that sentences for crimes perpetrated against gays should not be reduced by the court. He added that laws should be further revised to prevent discrimination against LGBT people.
On January 29, 2004, the Justice Commission decided to add “sexual orientation” to the “discrimination clause” which would prosecute people with a 6-month to 1-year jail term if they discriminate against others based on sexual orientation.
On July 6, 2004, Turkish Parliamentary Justice Commission overruled prison terms for ‘sexual orientation’ discrimination after Justice Minister Cemil Cicek claimed that discrimination based on gender or sexual orientation are the same things.
On September 15, 2004 representatives from Kaos GL, Lambda Istanbul and women rights organizations, joined the first Parliamentary Session in reviewing new Turkish Penal Code. The LGBT community demanded that the Justice Commission put “discrimination based on sexual orientation” back into the Penal Code draft (which did not happen).
Since that time, in order to explain the demands and worries of the LGBT people about the new Turkish Penal Law, Kaos GL and Lambda Istanbul issued numerous press statements and forwarded them to the members of the Justice Commission, Turkish MEPs and the Turkish public.
What Will Happen if the Demands of Turkish LGBT People Are Not Realized?
• Kaos GL has been publishing a political LGBT magazine since 1994. In 1999 during a trial about the magazine, the prosecutor decided the magazine was harmful to minors. This decision put Kaos GL Magazine into the same category as a pornographic publication. Therefore, Kaos GL Magazine was sold in a covered envelope for several months until the judge ruled in favor of the magazine. Will the Turkish Justice Commission and the Parliament put the demands and thoughts of Turkish LGBT people in an envelope again? Or, if that is not enough, will LGBT individuals be put in prison?
• The current situation stigmatizes and demeans the existence of LGBT people and finds their sexuality “immoral and unnatural”. Will the revision of the laws produce more stigmatization and discrimination because LGBT individuals are not legally considered?
• In the work place, LGBT people are not hired, they face obstacles to move up, or they are laid off because of their sexual orientation. Which law or regulation will protect LGBT employees from discrimination based on sexual orientation?
• LGBT government officials are forced to deny their sexual orientation; otherwise they risk termination of their contract with the government.
• Lesbians face violence and oppression. They are forced to get married or murdered because they are lesbians.
Turkish government officials claim that the penal code legislation was drafted to increase rights and freedoms and bring the Turkish justice system in line with European Union standards. What kind of freedom will the new Turkish Penal Code bring if LGBT people’s voice is shut out? Their sexuality will be stigmatized as something unnatural, their relationships won’t be recognized and they’ll be fired from their jobs because of their identity.
Revision and harmonization of all Turkish laws or regulations pretend that lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders do not exist. This is both not based on reality, but also not based on equality and justice.
PART 5 – TWO CASES REGARDING THE TRANSGENDERS IN TURKEY
Special Cases – Zeki Muren and Bulent Ersoy
There are two names that are well known to the Turkish public when the issue is transsexuality: Bulent Ersoy and Zeki Muren.
These people are important because they are popular musicians accepted by the Turkish society. They both raised questions of gender identity and sexual orientation, the former by stretching the roles acceptable for male dress and behavior; the latter by being open about her transgendered identity.
The “Ulker Street” Incident
Before 1980, there used to be a place called “copluk” (dumping ground) in Taksim, Istanbul. Transgender people worked in the houses there. On September 12, 1980, with the military coup, the “copluk” was banned. Transgender people of that area began to look for brothels. They mostly began to work on the streets, in their homes and clubs in Beyoglu, Istanbul. These places, after some time, turned out to be insecure, leading them to find safer places to live in. The Cihangir section has become the final destination of transgender people. They mostly lived in Abanoz Street of Cihangir, until they were forced to leave this street in late 1980s. Later on, they moved to Ulker Street.
Ulker Street is located in Cihangir, Istanbul behind The Marmara Hotel. It is estimated that about 70% of the transgender population used to live on that street before an infamous police expulsion.
The operation took place during the HABITAT summit in 1996. The police, along with the residents of the neighborhood, forced the transgender inhabitants to leave their homes. The police forces led the operation with the support of the inhabitants of Ulker Street and the media, who mostly spoke for the ones with more power. The aim of the operation was to get rid of transgender people. Although there was not one particular reason which started the operation, the dominant elements were as follows:
• Beyoglu was in the process of reconstruction (for the HABITAT summit)
• Economic and political interests of various groups
• Dominant culture’s attitude towards sub-culture (leaving them out)
• Not being able to solve the economic/social/biological/cultural problems of transgender people (which lead to violation) and pretending that they did not exist.
One of the reasons of the forced removal was to make transgendered people’s lives, which had become visible and accepted in the neighborhood, invisible and non-existent for the HABITAT summit, an international gathering which would bring Istanbul into the spotlight.
PART 6 - LGBT ISSUES IN TURKISH MEDIA
In this section, the Turkish media, concerning the LGBT issues, will be examined in three stages.
In the first period, (early 80’s) the homosexual man, the “gay” was something not fully understood. Gays were portrayed as a stereotype. A distinction between a homosexual man and a transgender was not made. Anyone “not normal” was considered to be homosexual.
The inside pages of the newspapers often used homosexuals as subjects to news of “murder, perversity and immorality.” Homosexuality was shown as an issue to entertain the public. This was also the period when AIDS became known as a disease of homosexuals. AIDS was breaking news, along with homosexuality.
While this was the case in the first period, in the second period (1990’s) the attitude of the media towards the LGBT people gradually began to change. Despite the differences of their sexual orientation and gender identity, all gay men (effeminate or not) and transgenders were considered as “homosexuals”. In other words transgenderism meant homosexuality.
Lesbianism, on the other hand, was sometimes placed in the news, but this was really rare. Other times, lesbianism was used as subjects for pornography.
The lesbians, gays and bisexuals were able to hide themselves from the public; no-one cared what they were as long as they stayed in silence, but the transgenders were visible to everyone. Whether they came out to the public or not did not matter, the media could find them easily.
In 1994, Kaos GL Magazine, the first LGBT magazine of Turkey, was published. Now, the LGBT population had begun to form its own organizations. Following this The Independence (Hurriyet), the biggest newspapers in Turkey, began to publish news about the LGBT community without altering them in order to turn them into subjects for entertainment for the public.
Starting in the early 2000s, the third period marks the beginning of a totally changed attitude both by the media and the LGBT community in Turkey. The LGBT people now choose not to run away and hide from the media. Instead, they communicate directly with the media to express themselves. The fight of the LGBT individual may now be seen in the media, rather than the portrayal as a “pervert” or a stereotype.
Today, things have changed drastically, compared to these three periods. Now one can see gays and lesbians on TV, discussing their concerns and asking for their rights. Both the concepts and the terminology have changed: the “homoseksuel” or the “homo” of the 80s has changed into “gey” or “escinsel”. This suggests that the society’s point of view and the perception of LGBT people have changed for both the media and the public.
PART 7- PROBLEMS OF LESBIANS IN TURKEY
The most important problem of lesbians living in Turkey is perhaps the difficulty of coming out. Even though lesbianism (along with gays and transgenders) is not considered a crime and not forbidden by law in Turkey, it’s very hard to come out because of the fact that discrimination against sexual orientation is not forbidden. During the discussions about the New Turkish Penal Law, the LGBT organizations like Kaos GL and Lambda Istanbul made campaigns with feminist organizations in order to make discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation a crime. Yet, the article making discrimination against sexual orientation a crime has been removed from the draft by the instruction of the Minister of Justice. Turkey still does not have any LGBT rights. (see “Part 4 –LGBT Community’s Concerns About New Turkish Penal Code”)
Education and Work Life
In Turkey, because of some religious and cultural facts, the education level of women is low compared to that of men. Since most women are not as educated, The number of women who have a chance to have a career is less then men.
Unemployment rate is high in Turkey and men are more likely to occupy the available jobs. By recent legal arrangements, obligatory education has been extended from five to eight years for both sexes. It is very hard for women who went through only obligatory education to find a job. They can only find under-paid jobs in metropolitan areas with almost no social security. Because only people who had a prior job can benefit from unemployment insurance, women, who mostly deal with housework or unregistered house oriented jobs, cannot access this benefit. Even the women who have economical independence are not allowed to live alone, without their families, unless they are married. Most women are forced to marry because of societal and economic pressure. Consequently many lesbians are forced into marriage. There has been a recent case that can give an idea of the degree of violence to which lesbians are exposed. In that case, a husband who killed his wife’s girlfriend, because of the fact that she was a lesbian, was given a diminished punishment for “unjust provocation”.
Family and Psychiatry
Some lesbians who come out to their families are punished in several ways. Some are not allowed even to go out and some families force them to go to psychiatrists in order to be treated. Contrary to the acceptable professional rules, some of the psychiatrists accept homosexuality as an illness and try to rid gays and lesbians of their sexual orientation. Kaos GL has some projects regarding this issue and is currently providing workshops in order to raise the understanding of psychiatrists regarding LGBT issues and to educate them that being a lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender is not an illness.
Government’s Attitude about Lesbians’ Problems
Turkish government provides neither positive programs to employ women, nor shelters for lesbians who are subjected to violence. Although some women’s shelters still exist, most have been closed due to financial problems.
Challenges in Work Life
Even working lesbians cannot come out in work places because the law does not forbid discrimination against sexual orientation. Being a lesbian is not forbidden by law but there are some articles in labor laws which allow the employees to fire people based on immorality. If a person is fired because of the fact that she/he is gay, the employee can claim that she/he has a right to fire the worker because she/he leads an immoral life.
In such a case, only the judge who works on that particular case can decide if that person’s life-style is immoral or not. At this time, there is no sample case. It is unknown what would happen if such a case occurs. If the judge is influenced by the pressure of religious and cultural beliefs that being a lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender is immoral, she/he can arrive at a decision that it is an immoral act. If such a decision is approved by the Supreme Court, then that decision will become a rule of legal argument. Due to such pressures, most LGBT workers don’t come out at their work places. This enhances the problem of invisibility and thus delays social transformation.
In a sample case in 1996, the Supreme Court decided to give the custody (guardianship) of a child to the father, because the mother was a lesbian who was accused of leading an immoral life.
Religion and Women’s Status in Community
One of the reasons that make coming out a major challenge is religion. In Islam, homosexuality, as well as premarital sex, is a sin. Because of these facts, women’s sexuality is rarely spoken in families and community.
The prevailing culture in Turkey is based on fear of women’s sexuality which forces them to live with men. That is why it is very hard for a woman to accept herself as a lesbian and to build a lesbian life. Women in Turkey represent the “honor” of their families and community. Sometimes, even women living alone are regarded as prostitutes. Women do not feel safe when walking in the street or sometimes in their homes. The community does not allow women to form self-confidence. They are expected to obey men, their families and community. Maybe the most important problem in Turkey is that a person is seen as a woman or man, well before being seen as a human being. Gender roles have an enormous pressure on individuals, especially on women. Under such circumstances, lesbians are exposed to discrimination for both their gender and sexual orientation.
Distortion and Ignorance of Mainstream Media
Turkish mainstream media mentions LGBT issues but they mostly mention male homosexuality and not lesbianism. Mainstream media systematically presents male homosexuality as a marginal phenomenon which belongs to only famous people and artists. The visible lesbians in Turkey mostly belong to upper socio-economic and cultural classes because their economic freedom allows them to be out. That’s why lesbians who belong to lower socio-economic and cultural classes are rarely visible and not reflected in the media at all. As a consequence, lesbianism is considered to be an upper class phenomenon.
The political struggles and campaigns lesbian women pursue are not mentioned in mainstream media, unless they are distorted, because they are not seen as popular news. Media tries to represent lesbianism as a marginal phenomenon and this makes it impossible for lesbians to find role models.
Deficiencies in Consciousness Raising and Solutions:
The feminist movement is not strong enough in Turkey and the government does not support it. Women are not conscious enough about feminism; thus their awareness of lesbianism is very limited.
Unfortunately there are Woman Studies Programs only in five universities in Turkey. The lesbian and heterosexual women attending Woman Studies Programs are more conscious about lesbianism. LGBT people think that supporting such studies will contribute much to awareness-raising of a larger community.
Although it would be useful to make the necessary legal arrangements for LGBT rights, active promotion of women’s independence, by empowering them economically, socially and culturally is as important as providing legal rights.