‘LGBTI+ existence won’t disappear just because Turkey withdraws from convention’

Tar: We should have been discussing why the Article 4 of the İstanbul Convention is not enforced

İstanbul Convention was not abolished out of nowhere. We know that especially since 2015, the media and politics have joined hands to portray the LGBTI+ movement as a target.

They were especially attacking through the Convention with abstract information that had nothing to do with reality and had no truth whatsoever.

They did it so systematically... Sometimes, the media was the trigger and the politics followed suit. Sometimes, it was the exact opposite: The politics was the trigger and the media followed suit. As a result, İstanbul Convention was abolished in the middle of the night by citing the LGBTI+s as the excuse.

Then, another wave of attack began: The Presidency's statement that "the convention was normalizing homosexuality." Homosexuality is already normal. It does not need to be normalized. Homosexuality is an existence and it has already existed in this land. It did not come here alongside İstanbul Convention.

In fact, we should have been discussing how we can implement, improve and widely enforce the Article 4 of the İstanbul Convention regarding the protection of the ones subjected to violence due to their sexual orientation, we have now fallen much much behind it.

During the pandemic, there have been attacks on LGBTI+s from everywhere, from the Presidency of Religious Affairs to the Ministry of Trade. Discriminatory and homophobic practices have always been there.

It is seen in the Kaos GL's reports as well. In the Hate Crimes report, we indicated that 50 percent of those who witnessed a hate crime stay silent and 25 percent gave a statement in favor of the perpetrator. It shows that there is a state of lynch, a systematic lynch against LGBTI+s.

Moreover, we must also mention the Media Monitoring Report. There are some media outlets which have it as their publication policy to produce hate speech against LGBTI+s. It is also seen in our reports that the media and politics have run a joint campaign against LGBTI+ existence.

Even the unenforced article of the İstanbul Convention was important for LGBTI+s. It said, "No one shall inflict violence on anyone due to one's sexual orientation." There is no such life safety any longer.

Demir: No one is alone

The termination of İstanbul Convention is an indication that an attack has begun, a war has been opened against all women, children and LGBTI+s.

And their excuse is the following: "Homosexuality is being legitimized." Homosexuality is not something like that, it is not such an existence. It does not need to be normalized. Homosexuality exists and it does not need to be normalized by anyone any way.

Homosexuality has been in existence in this land for centuries and it will keep on doing so. We do not give up on the İstanbul Convention; we do not consent to this last decision. We will do whatever is necessary about this issue. Neither homosexuality nor the struggle of the LGBTI+ movement will end due to the abolishment of the İstanbul Convention.

I think that one of the aims here is to divide the women's movement through LGBTI+s. But they will not succeed in doing this.

Women will keep struggling together with the LGBTI+ movement. We are neither alone nor wrong. Even our fellow LGBTI+ living at the farthest corner of Turkey is not alone. We will keep on laying claim to one another.

Article 4 of İstanbul Convention

Parties shall take the necessary legislative and other measures to promote and protect the right for everyone, particularly women, to live free from violence in both the public and the private sphere.

Parties condemn all forms of discrimination against women and take, without delay, the necessary legislative and other measures to prevent it, in particular by:

–embodying in their national constitutions or other appropriate legislation the principle of equality between women and men and ensuring the practical realisation of this principle;

–prohibiting discrimination against women, including through the use of sanctions, where appropriate;

–abolishing laws and practices which discriminate against women.

The implementation of the provisions of this Convention by the Parties, in particular measures to protect the rights of victims, shall be secured without discrimination on any ground such as sex, gender, race, colour, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, association with a national minority, property, birth, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, state of health, disability, marital status, migrant or refugee status, or other status.

Special measures that are necessary to prevent and protect women from gender-based violence shall not be considered discrimination under the terms of this Convention.