Hearing of dozens in Boğaziçi Pride trial marks Turkey's Pride Month start
During the last day of marathon hearings involving 70 students participating in last year's Boğaziçi Pride, İstanbul's Police Chief faced again allegations of employing excessive violence.
Pride Month, which commenced today (June 1), marked the final day of a marathon of three hearings involving 70 students, exchange students, an academic, and a journalist.
They are under investigation for participating in the 9th Pride Parade held at the prestigious Boğaziçi University on May 20, 2022, and face charges of up to three years imprisonment for "resisting the police and opposing demonstration laws."
The parade, held during the university's Taşoda Music Festival, took a violent turn when students tried to make their way to the clubroom of BÜLGBTİA+, the school's LGBTI+ studies club that had been closed the year prior by controversial and now dismissed trustee rector Melih Bulu.
'I will kill you'
On the third day of the hearing, echoing the previous days, the defendants, mostly in their early twenties, vehemently asserted their right to freedom of expression and protest while highlighting the excessive police violence.
"I believe nobody here is guilty. The police arrived suddenly and began assaulting everyone. It appeared as though they were enjoying it. They grabbed me, hit my face, and laughed at me while taking me into custody. The police mocked me with their looks. I witnessed them grabbing someone's throat and squeezing it, despite them saying they can't beath. 'I will kill you' they said," an exchange student from the Netherlands conveyed through a translator, further pleading not guilty as they were exercising their freedom of speech and defending human rights.
İstanbul police chief again singled out
Once again, students consistently singled out İstanbul Police Chief Hanifi Zengin. One defendant described how they were taken into custody by the security head while not participating in the march.
"I went to see what was going on and was detained. Then Hanifi Zengin came and said, 'Are you so curious? Come and see your friends then,' and grabbed me by the arm," they explained.
Another student asserted only encountering Zengin during protests and accused him of being inclined towards apprehending and mistreating women and LGBTI+ individuals.
"I see him 10 times a year: At İstanbul Convention protests, Pride Marches, and March 8. I only see him during protests. What is his job description? I only see him detaining people and giving orders for beatings," the student claimed during their statement.
Zengin has been under public scrutiny over his maltreatment of LGBTI+ activists, journalists, and demonstrators, with numerous complaints filed against him for alleged "harassment" and accusations of "physical assault, torture, and mistreatment."
"As far as I understand, he has an interest in women and LGBTI+ people. If so, I can suggest some cases to him. I can suggest the case of Hande Kader, who was burned to death, and the case of Ahmet Yıldız. We have been looking for Gülistan Doku for years, I can recommend this case," they vented, adding that they should investigate protests organized by sects calling for the death penalty for LGBTI+ people.
Hande Kader was a transgender woman, sex worker, and LGBTI+ activist whose tragic death in 2016 sparked outrage. Her remains, subjected to rape and burning, were discovered in an İstanbul suburb. BÜLGBTİA+ erected a scholarship in her name. However, the grant was later revoked by Boğaziçi's presidency in 2017.
The 2008 murder of openly gay Ahmet Yıldız by his father has been labeled as one of Turkey's earliest instances of gay honor killing.
Gülistan Doku was a university student who went missing in January 2020 in Dersim. Her story has become a symbol of the ongoing struggle for women's rights, safety, and justice, and Doku's name is often chanted at Women's marches.
A total of 55 people, including one faculty member and one journalist, have taken the defense so far. The next hearing will be held on November 2.
???? 9. Boğaziçi Onur Yürüyüşü'nün yargılandığı davanın, üç gün süren ilk duruşması sonuçlandı!
???? İkinci duruşma, 2 Kasım 2023 saat 09.30'da Çağlayan Adliyesi'nde görülecek. pic.twitter.com/LcHPQAwjAc
Protests and unrest engulfed Boğaziçi University following President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's contentious decision in 2021 to appoint Melih Bulu, a member of his party, as the rector. This move circumvented the institution's long-standing democratic tradition.
One of Bulu's first decisions was banning the LGBTI+ studies club. Furthermore, the university administration initiated an investigation against a student for displaying a "rainbow flag" during protests on February 1, 2021.
A dozen more students were apprehended on March 25, 2021, when they displayed solidarity by unfurling a rainbow flag on the day of the trial hearing. This case was later postponed and coincided with pride week.
More recently, Bulu's successor banned LGBTI+ film screenings on campus.
Second-worst on the Rainbow Index
In the last years, LGBTI+ rights have taken a nosedive in Turkey, currently ranking second-worst on ILGA Europe's Rainbow Index.
This decline has been accompanied by the increasing prominence of LGBTI+phobia in both the country's public and political domains. Large-scale anti-LGBTI+ rallies have been held and openly endorsed by politicians of Turkey's ruling party, while İstanbul Pride has been banned since 2015.
During his recent campaign trail, President Erdoğan has weaponized LGBTI+ phobia, referring to the opposition as LGBT and denouncing these groups as "perverted movements" in his victory speech after securing his third term on Sunday (May 28).
Adding fuel to the fire, alliance members have publicly pledged to shut down all LGBTI+ associations in the country, while Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu suggested that the term LGBT includes marriages between animals and humans. (EMK/WM)
bianet kadın ve LGBTİ+ haberleri editörü (Ekim 2018- Şubat 2025). bianet stajyerlerinden (2000-2001). Cumhuriyet, BirGün, DİHA, Jinha, Jin News, İMC TV için muhabirlik yaptı. Rize'de...
bianet kadın ve LGBTİ+ haberleri editörü (Ekim 2018- Şubat 2025). bianet stajyerlerinden (2000-2001). Cumhuriyet, BirGün, DİHA, Jinha, Jin News, İMC TV için muhabirlik yaptı. Rize'de yerel gazetelerde çalıştı. Sivil Sayfalar, Yeşil Gazete, Journo ve sektör dergileri için yazılar yazdı, haberleri yayınlandı. Hemşin kültür dergisi GOR’un kurucu yazarlarından. Yeşilden Maviye Karadenizden Kadın Portreleri, Sırtında Sepeti, Medya ve Yalanlar isimli kitaplara katkı sundu. Musa Anter Gazetecilik (2011) ve Türkiye Psikiyatri Derneği (2024) en iyi haber ödülü sahibi. Türkiye Gazeteciler Sendikası Kadın ve LGBTİ+ Komisyonu kurucularından. Sendikanın İstanbul Şubesi yöneticilerinden (2023-2027). İstanbul Üniversitesi Avrupa Birliği ve Bilgi Üniversitesi Uluslararası İlişkiler bölümlerinden mezun. Toplumsal cinsiyet odaklı habercilik ve cinsiyet temelli şiddet haberciliği alanında atölyeler düzenliyor. Şubat 2025'den bu yana kadın haberleri editörü olarak çalışıyor.
Öcalan and the DEM Party delegation at İmralı prison on Feb 27.
Abdullah Öcalan, the jailed leader of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), met with family members on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr, marking a rare visit permitted at İmralı Island Prison. Three other prisoners held at the facility, Ömer Hayri Konar, Hamili Yıldırım, and Veysi Aktaş, were also allowed family visits.
The visits took place as part of the holiday visitation rights granted by prison authorities, Mezopotamya Agency (MA) reported. Öcalan met with his nephew, Peoples' Equality and Democracy (DEM) Party MP Ömer Öcalan.
Family visits to Öcalan have long been restricted. Since 2014, he has been allowed to meet with relatives only seven times. The previous visit took place on Oct 23, following a 44-month period of total incommunicado detention. That visit, which involved Ömer Öcalan, came amid a broader political initiative launched by the ruling bloc in October to address the Kurdish issue.
The other inmates have also faced severe limitations. Konar and Aktaş, both transferred to İmralı in March 2015, have each had only four family visits to date, including this one. Yıldırım has had just three.
Lawyer access has similarly been restricted. Öcalan has had only five meetings with his legal team over the past 14 years, the last of which took place on Aug 7, 2019. Konar, Yıldırım, and Aktaş have not had any lawyer visits since being moved to İmralı.
On Mar 28, the Asrın Law Office, which represents Öcalan and the other prisoners, stated that 52 requests for family and lawyer visits had gone unanswered and called on the Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) to urgently visit the prison.
As part of ongoing political engagement, a DEM Party delegation visited İmralı three times, on Dec 28, Jan 22, and Feb 27, within the framework of efforts to find a democratic and peaceful resolution to the Kurdish issue. After the third meeting, Öcalan issued a call for the PKK to lay down its arms after four decades of armed insurgency. (VK)
Mahir Polat, deputy secretary-general of the İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality, was transferred back to prison after undergoing angioplasty at a hospital. Polat had been remanded in custody along with 50 others, including İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu.
After experiencing health issues on Mar 27, Polat was taken to the hospital from Silivri Prison.
During earlier police and prosecutor questioning, Polat had described his health conditions and requested they be taken into consideration.
He said that he had undergone angiography two weeks prior to his detention and had six stents inserted. “In addition, two of my arteries are still blocked,” he said.
Polat added that a second angiography had been scheduled and that his treatment was ongoing, including a course of medication. “Because I had thyroid cancer, I regularly undergo PET scans to monitor for metastasis. I also live with sleep apnea and rely on a CPAP device. On top of that, I have hypertension and diabetes,” he told authorities.
Polat, who previously overcame thyroid cancer, is under regular cancer screening and suffers from hypertension and diabetes.
Background
İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, along with Şişli Mayor Resul Emrah Şahan, Beylikdüzü Mayor Murat Çalık, and nearly 100 others, were detained during early-morning police raids on Mar 19.
The detentions were part of two separate investigations. The first probe focuses on allegations of organized corruption involving municipal companies, including claims of rigged tenders, fraud, bribery, and unlawful acquisition of personal data. Prosecutors allege that İmamoğlu formed a “criminal organization for personal gain” during his time as mayor of Beylikdüzü, prior to his election as İstanbul mayor in 2019.
The prosecution claims that municipal subsidiaries were used in connection with these alleged offenses.
More than 90 individuals were detained in connection with this invstigation, including İmamoğlu's advisor and Medya Inc. executive Murat Ongun; his campaign manager Necati Özkan; Tuncay Yılmaz, general manager of İmamoğlu Construction; Metropolitan Municipality Secretary-General Can Akın Çağlar; İstanbul Planning Agency head Buğra Gökçe; Culture İstanbul Director Murat Abbas; İlbak Holding board chair Murat İlbak; and shareholder Mustafa İlbak.
The second investigation pertains to what prosecutors call a "terrorism" case tied to a political agreement, dubbed as "urban consensus" between İmamoğlu's Republican People's Party (CHP) and the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Equality and Democracy (DEM) Party in the 2024 local elections.
As part of this probe, detention orders were issued for seven people, including İmamoğlu. Prosecutors allege that some municipal council members and deputy mayors appointed through the CHP quota had links to outlawed organizations, and that sympathizers were employed through İBB subsidiaries such as the İstanbul Planning Agency (İPA) and BİMTAŞ.
Mahir Polat, Şişli Mayor Resul Emrah Şahan, and Reform Institute Director Mehmet Ali Çalışkan were among those detained in this investigation.
Following four days in custody, İmamoğlu and others were referred to court on Mar 22. On the morning of Mar 23, the court ordered the arrest of 48 individuals, including İmamoğlu, Murat Çalık, Buğra Gökçe, and Murat Ongun, in connection with the corruption probe. An additional 44 people were released under judicial supervision.
In the terrorism-related file, the court rejected the prosecution’s request to detain İmamoğlu. However, Şişli Mayor Resul Emrah Şahan, Deputy Secretary-General Mahir Polat, and Reform Institute Director Mehmet Ali Çalışkan were formally arrested on Mar 23 under the "terrorism" investigation. Şişli Deputy Mayor Ebru Öztürk, who was also sought in the case, was taken into custody on Mar 29.
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