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The
Observatory has been informed about the arbitrary dissolution of the
Young LGBTI+ Association, as well as judicial harassment against the
executives and employees of the organisation. The Young Lesbian Gay
Bisexual Trans Intersex Youth Studies and Solidarity Association
(Young
LGBTI+ Association - Genç
LGBTİ+ Derneği)
was established in Izmir in 2016, with the aim of researching the
challenges faced by LGBTQIA+ youth, bringing them to public
attention, offering solutions, and creating spaces for LGBTQIA+
persons to express themselves.
On
11 December 2025, the Izmir 3rd Civil Court of First Instance ruled
to dissolve the Young LGBTI+ Association, on the basis of five social
media posts shared by the association in 2019, 2020, and 2022. These
social media posts were illustrations shared by the association on
Lesbian Visibility Day in 2019 and 2022, and on the occasion of the
4th LGBTI+ Youth Festival in 2020. The court ruled that the posts
containing “obscene” images were viewed by many people and
reached a wide audience, that they could encourage and promote
lesbian, gay, bisexual, transvestite, or trans-sexuality, and that
the association was not in line with the moral values of society and
Article 41 of the Constitution of the Republic of Turkey (Protection
of the family, and children’s rights). The Young LGBTI+ Association
will be appealing this decision.
The
Observatory recalls that on 10 December 2024, the Izmir Governor's
Office reported the Young LGBTI+ Association to the Izmir Chief
Public Prosecutor's Office due to the five illustrations shared by
the association on social media, and requested that a criminal
investigation be launched for obscenity and that a lawsuit be filed
to dissolve the association. As a result, an investigation was
launched on charges of “facilitating the publication of obscene
material” (Article 226/2 of the Penal Code of Turkey) and
“establishing an association for prohibited purposes or to commit
criminal acts” (Articles 30(b) and 32(p) of the Associations Law),
with reference to Article 41 of the Constitution concerning the
protection of the family. On 3 February 2025, a dissolution case was
filed against the association in the Izmir 3rd Civil Court of First
Instance (case no. 2025/41 E.) on the grounds that it encouraged
society to adopt LGBTI+ identities by sharing obscene content, and
the trial opened on 11 March 2025.
In
parallel with these civil proceedings, the
Izmir Chief Public Prosecutor's Office Cybercrime Bureau launched a
criminal investigation on 10 December 2024 against
11 individuals, including members of the Young LGBTI+ association's
board of directors and supervisory board, and two employees, on the
basis of the same five social media posts. A repetitive criminal
investigation on the same social media posts was launched on 24 March
2025 by the Izmir Press Prosecutor's Office. Although the Cybercrime
Bureau eventually decided on 14 August 2025 not to prosecute the 11
individuals for obscenity, the Press Prosecutor’s Office proceeded
to file a criminal case against these 11 individuals under the
Associations Law. The first hearing in this case is scheduled for 8
April 2026.
As
previously documented by the Observatory and its partner
organisations in Turkey, the Human Rights Association (İnsan
Hakları Derneği
- IHD) and the Human Rights Foundation of Turkey (Türkiye
İnsan Hakları Vakfı
- TİHV) in their report “‘Uncertain
and Eerie’: Closure Cases Against Associations in Turkey”,
closure cases against associations are increasingly being used by the
authorities in Turkey to hinder the work of human rights defenders
and civil society organisations, particularly that of women’s and
LGBTQIA+ rights organisations and organisations working on the
Kurdish issue. Among other
forms of harassment,
the drastic measure of involuntary dissolution of associations, which
the cases can lead to, is increasingly abused by the authorities to
silence, discredit and sanction associations in retaliation for their
work.
Since
2021, at least six associations have faced closure cases in Turkey. Of
these, only the dissolution case against the We Will Stop Femicide
Platform (KCDP) was dismissed in 2023. The Religious Scholars Mutual
Aid and Solidarity Association (DİAYDER) was dissolved in 2022 and
the Migration Monitoring Association (GÖÇİZDER) was dissolved in
2024, whereas the dissolution case against the Tarlabaşı Community
Centre (TTM) and the Mutual Aid, Solidarity, Unity and Culture
Association with Families Who Lost Relatives in the Cradle of
Civilizations (MEBYADER) are ongoing. The involuntary dissolution of
the Young LGBTI+ Association represents yet another example of this
worrisome trend.
The
Observatory notes with concern that the dissolution of the Young
LGBTI+ Association takes place against a backdrop of increasing
attacks against LGBTQIA+ people and rights defenders in Turkey. In
October 2025, a government
draft law
was leaked to the press revealing plans to criminalise “attitudes
and behaviours contrary to biological sex from birth and general
morality” as well as those deemed to “openly encourage, praise,
or promote such attitudes and behaviours”. The proposal also sought
to restrict gender-affirming care by raising the minimum age to 25
and introducing burdensome requirements. These provisions were not
included in the bill that was recently submitted to Parliament,
following criticism from a wide range of domestic
and international actors that the initial proposal was a clear
violation of the rights of LGBTQIA+ people. However, the involuntary
dissolution of the Young LGBTI+ Association on grounds that it
“encourages” being LGBTQIA+ raises an alarm regarding possible
future attempts to criminalise LGBTQIA+ persons and content. That
the association was shut down on grounds of obscenity by the civil
court despite the prosecution’s decision not to prosecute
association executives for obscenity further demonstrates that
existing laws are weaponised against LGBTQIA+ defenders in line with
the spirit and aims of the draft law. That both the dissolution and
the criminal case rely on five illustrations shared on social media
also point to undue restrictions of artistic freedom protected under
the right to freedom of expression.
The
Observatory strongly condemns the arbitrary dissolution of the Young
LGBTI+ Association and the criminal proceedings against its members,
which appear to be aimed solely at preventing and criminalising the
organisation and its employees from exercising their legitimate human
rights work. The dissolution violates the right to freedom of
association, recognised by international human rights law,
particularly under Article 22 of the International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), and under Article 11
of the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms
(ECHR), to which Turkey is a party. Under these provisions, the
dissolution of an association should be considered as a last resort,
applied only in exceptional cases where lesser sanctions fail and
when there is evidence of an imminent, severe and proven threat to
public order. Even then, dissolution is permissible only when it is
lawful, strictly necessary, proportionate and when it pursues a
legitimate aim. It cannot be used to suppress dissent or target
individuals or organisations who are critical of or promote views
contrary to the ones supported by the government.
The
Observatory urges the authorities in Turkey to immediately quash the
dissolution of the Young LGBTI+ Association, to drop all criminal
charges against the 11 association’s members, and to guarantee, in
all circumstances, the rights to freedom of association and
expression.
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