Targeted operations against LGBTQ+ activists and organizations in Turkey were carried out over the past weekend. During these operations, several individuals were arrested by Turkish authorities, and many social media accounts were blocked. The actions of the Turkish government have faced sharp criticism from across the country as well as from Brussels.
The Turkish Government and the "Decade of Family and Population" Plan
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the President of Turkey, has introduced these operations as part of the national plan "Decade of Family and Population," which was announced in May 2025. The aim of this plan is to address the significant decline in birth rates in the country and to strengthen traditional and conservative attitudes towards family in Turkey.
In a statement released by various organizations, it was stated: "The freedom of assembly, freedom of expression, privacy protection, and the presumption of innocence also apply to LGBTQ+ individuals." These organizations also declared: "As women, we oppose operations carried out in the name of 'protecting the family.' We know that the repression of bodies, lives, identities, and our right to organize is part of the same authoritarian policies. Being LGBTQ+ is not a crime! Organizing as LGBTQ+ individuals is not a crime!"
Criticism of the Government and Its Consequences
Yıldız Tağızadeh from the Women's Human Rights Organization (WWHR) claims that the government is trying to criminalize the LGBTQ+ community. She added that this criminalization did not start only with the recent operations but has been ongoing for years. According to Tağızadeh, the government's aim is not only to target LGBTQ+ individuals but to effectively prohibit the LGBTQ+ community from political activity, organizing, demanding rights, and participating in public life.
She also emphasized that these operations are carried out under the slogan "My family is safe" and that the government is attempting to justify its actions by claiming to protect families and children. However, this narrative is ineffective, as there are real issues in today's Turkey, such as poverty, housing crisis, unemployment, and violence against women.
Other organizations have also criticized the government's actions. The Turkish Medical Association (TTB) described these actions as a violation of human rights and called for an end to discriminatory policies. This association emphasized that it is unacceptable to consider gender identity and sexual orientation as crimes and to drag individuals out of their homes at night and block digital channels.
Erkan Baş, the head of the Labor Party of Turkey (TIP), has called for the immediate release of those arrested and emphasized that the existence of LGBTQ+ individuals is not a crime in itself. He added: "All those who do not accept the government's views are invited to 'order' with the judiciary, batons, and censorship. If they get their way, they want nothing more than to turn being 'against the government' into a crime and sit back and watch."
These operations were carried out on Sunday in the cities of Istanbul, Ankara, and Izmir. Throughout this week, many websites and social media accounts related to LGBTQ+ groups, various organizations, and activists were blocked. On the day of the operation, 32 additional accounts were suspended, and the number of blocked accounts exceeded 100 the following day.
Among those affected were organizations such as Amnesty International Turkey, the leftist newspaper Evrensel, the Academics for Peace Initiative, the Justice Lawyers Association, the Women's Rights Organization Mor Dağınım, and the LGBTQ+ rights group Kaos GL.
The legal basis for these actions was announced based on a ruling from an Istanbul court. The Bakirkoy Prosecutor's Office justified the suspensions by citing investigations into accounts that published "immoral content and LGBTQ+ propaganda."
According to several media reports, the accounts were also blocked for "national security" reasons. Critics have called this action digital censorship. Homosexual acts are not a crime in Turkey, but the Turkish government has repeatedly described the LGBTQ+ community as a movement of "deviants."
The Minister of Justice, Akın Gürlek, previously accused LGBTQ+ organizations of promoting "immorality" and stated in a social media post that "no criminal organization, abuse network, or illegal activity targeting families, youth, or children will be tolerated."
Commission spokesperson Christian Wigand pointed out that Turkey, as a candidate for EU membership, "must promote and guarantee the human rights and dignity of all individuals, regardless of gender identity or sexual orientation." He added that "stigmatization and discrimination are incompatible with the values of the Union."
However, Emma Sinclair-Webb, the Turkey director for Human Rights Watch, interpreted the arrests as a sign of the government's intent to criminalize LGBTQ+ individuals without the passage of new laws.
