Boğaziçi protests: LGBTI+ groups denounce hate speech by government officials
Photo: Dilek Şen/bianet
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Several LGBTI+ groups have released statements denouncing government officials' discriminatory statements against LGBTI+s during the protests at Boğaziçi University against the president's appointment of a new rector.
In a joint statement, 12 LGBTI+ groups said, "Attacks on LGBTI+s and freedom of expression and organization of LGBTI+s, discrimination and hate speech cannot be accepted."
"... The closure of the Boğaziçi University LGBTI+ Studies Club and the announcement of this decision on social media before informing the club is a very clear violation of LGBTI+s freedom of expression and organization," said the groups.
While government officials have incriminated students since the start of the protests, they have specifically targeted LGBTI+s, especially after the display of an artwork depicting Kaaba and a rainbow flag during an event at the university.
Although students explained in a video that they displayed all the works sent to them, anti LGBTI+ statements continued.
Rector Melih Bulu closed the LGBTI+ Studies Club, the group that organized the event in question, citing a criminal investigation into the event for several offenses, including "inciting the public into animosity and hatred."
Minister of Interior Süleyman Soylu continued calling LGBTI+s "deviants" today (February 2) as Twitter restricted access to in one of his tweets today because of hate conduct.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said yesterday that "God willing, we will bring our youth to the future, not as the LGBT youth, but as the youth in the nation's glorious history."
"LGBTI+s struggle for equality and freedom is the struggle for democratization and human rights and is an indispensable part of this struggle.
"We say once again to the authorities that they need to end violating our rights with smear campaigns immediately.
"We call on all civil society organizations to fight hate speech and hate crime against such campaigns that could put the lives of LGBTI+s in danger."
The statement was signed by 17 Mayıs Association, GALADER, Young LGBTI+ Solidarity Association, HEVİ LGBTI+, Kaos GL, Lambdaistanbul, LİSTAG, Muamma LGBTI+, Free Colors Association, Pembe Hayat, SPoD and Unikuir Association.
In a separate statement, the Association for Struggle Against Sexual Violence said that it was in solidarity with those who were targeted by hate speech and smear campaigns.
"Targeting LGBTI+s by insulting and criminalizing them and marginalizing rights defenders is discriminatory and a crime. Neither the seized rainbow flags nor being an LGBTI+ is a crime.
"It is unacceptable that persons and institutions that have the responsibility to ensure social peace mark a social group as a target.
"These actions have not only constituted an attack on the freedom of the youth, students and especially LGBTI+s but also exacerbated rights violations by causing unfair arrests.
"We remind Turkey's recent score in terms of restricting rights and freedoms and unlawful practices; we want attacks on the life safety, personal rights of women and LGBTI+s to end!"
What happened?Prof. Melih Bulu has been appointed as the President of Boğaziçi University in a Presidential Decree issued on January 1. The appointment of Bulu has sparked harsh criticisms among both the students and academics of the university as well as in the academic community. Appointed to Boğaziçi, one of the most prestigious universities in Turkey, from outside its community, Bulu was a candidate for nomination to run in the Parliamentary elections in 2015 for the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), which is chaired by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The students and several students' clubs of the university have been campaigning on social media under the hashtag #kayyımrektöristemiyoruz (We don't want a trustee university president). The call of the students was also supported by the faculty members of the university, who released a joint statement on January 3. "An academic outside Bogazici University community was appointed as rector (university president), which is a practice introduced for the first time after the 1980s military tutelage," read their statement. Amid harsh criticisms of students and faculty members, Prof. Bulu has shared a message on his Twitter account, welcoming his appointment to the position, saying, "We are all in the same boat." The students protested the appointment of Bulu in front of the South Campus of the university in İstanbul on January 4. However, the police intervened into the protest with pepper gas and plastic bullets. Next day, it was reported that there were detention warrants against 28 people for "violating the law on meetings and demonstrations" and "resisting the officer on duty." Later in the day, 22 of them were detained. 40 people in total were detained over the protests. All of the detained were released on January 7 and 8, 2021. The protests of students and faculty members at the South Campus of Boğaziçi University have been going on since January 4. On February 1, police stormed the South Campus and intervened into the students' protests. Earlier in the day, the students gathered in front of the campus for the protest. Police hindered the protest while also preventing the students inside the South Campus from joining their friends outside. With the 51 students taken into custody inside the campus in the evening, the number of detained increased to 159. In a statement released by the İstanbul Governor's Office in the early morning hours on February 2, it was announced that 98 students were released from detention. About Melih BuluProf. Melih Bulu was appointed as the President of Haliç University on January 17, 2020. In office in this foundation university for less than a year, he has been appointed as the President of Boğaziçi University. He was a Dean and University President at the İstinye University from 2016 to 2019. Between the years of 2010 and 2016, he was the Head of the Business Management Department of İstanbul Şehir University's Business Management and Management Science Faculty. He was the General Coordinator of International Competitiveness Research Institute (URAK), an NGO working on economic competitiveness of cities and countries, from the year 2017 to 2019. Since 2011, he has been the Executive Board member of the İstanbul Electric-Electronic Machinery and Informatics Exporters R&D Market. In 2002, he founded the Sarıyer District Organization of the ruling AKP in İstanbul. In 2015, he was a candidate for nomination to run in the Parliamentary elections from the AKP in the first election district in İstanbul. He studied Industrial Engineering at the Middle East Technical University (METU) in Ankara in 1992. He did his MBA and PhD at Boğaziçi University's Department of Management. |
(EMK/VK)