In Turkey, Pride Picnic draws police violence · Global Voices
Arzu Geybullayeva

Screenshot taken from the video about a Pride march held in the Turkish city of Izmir in 2014. The video is available here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXSOMgTR7Qk
Turkish police, violently dispersed a group of people, celebrating Pride week at Maçka Park, one of the city's remaining green spaces in the district of Şişli on June 22. Police intervention began reportedly after the Şişli Governor's Office issued a statement, banning the picnic because it could result in “public disorder.”
The Istanbul Pride Week Committee tweeted that as a result, one person was detained and several were battered during the police intervention.
Police attacked the vegan picnic we held in Maçka today. One of our friends was arrested, many of our friends were beaten. We will not be silenced, we are not afraid, we won't obey!
— İstanbul LGBTİ+ Onur Haftası (@istanbulpride) June 22, 2021
Award-winning Turkish-British novelist Elif Şafak also shared the images in the following tweet:
Birlikte bir ekmeği bölüşmek, bir şarkı mırıldanmak, bir tutam dostluk dayanışma, yalnız olmadığını bilmek şu dünyada….ama güzel olan herşeye düşman bu sistem. Kadın katillerine iyi davranan polis, barışçıl piknik yapan masum gençlerden ne istediniz? #PiknikYasaklanamaz #LGBT pic.twitter.com/9QAldkBsPJ
— Elif Shafak (@Elif_Safak) June 22, 2021
Sharing a piece of bread together, humming a song, a pinch of friendship and solidarity, knowing that you are not alone in this world… but this system is hostile to everything beautiful. Police, who treats nicely the murderers of women nicely, what did you want from the innocent young people having a peaceful picnic?
According to reporting by Gazete Duvar, an online news platform, the picnic was originally planned at Istanbul's Heybeliada (one of the Princes’ Islands off the coast of Istanbul) but was then banned by the police directorate of the Princes’ Islands.
Police intervention was criticized under the hashtag #PiknikYasaklanamaz [A picnic cannot be banned].
Journalists, activists, and other members of the public flooded Twitter with images and videos of the police intervention. One detailed thread was shared by citizen journalism platform Dokuz8Haber:
? Maçka Parkı'nda Onur Haftası pikniği düzenleyen kitle polislerce ablukaya alındı.#dokuz8/@puleragema pic.twitter.com/MYUFThNb11
— dokuz8HABER (@dokuz8haber) June 22, 2021
The crowd that organized the Pride Week picnic in Maçka Park was blockaded by the police.
A member of Boğaziçi University's LGBTI+ community, was left with a broken arm as a result.
BİR ARKADAŞIMIZIN KOLU KIRILDI. FAİLLERİ BELLİDİR!
— Boğaziçi LGBTİ+ (@bogaziciLGBTI) June 22, 2021
Our friend's arm was broken. The perpetrators are known.
Similarly, the Istanbul branch of the Progressive Lawyers’ Association (ÇHD) reported several of its members had been beaten:
İstanbul Valiliği'nin usulsüz yasak kararını gerekçe gösteren polis, maçka parkındaki pride pikniğine köpeklerle saldırdı.1 kişi gözaltına alındı, çok sayıda meslektaşımız ve birçok LGBTİ+ darp edilerek işkenceye uğradı. Maçka parkında bekleyiş sürüyor. Polis nefret suçu işliyor!
— ÇHD İstanbul Şube (@CHDistanbul) June 22, 2021
Citing the illegal ban decision of the Istanbul Governor's Office, the police attacked the pride picnic in Maçka Park with dogs. 1 person was detained, many of our colleagues and many LGBTI+ were beaten and tortured. Waiting continues in Maçka park. The police are committing a hate crime!
The Şişli Governor's Office also informed the Istanbul Pride Week Committee that all of the activities planned for the week will be banned for the next 30 days, reported another local paper Evrensel.
This is not the first time, Pride events have been banned for public safety and disorder. In 2015, Turkish police fired tear gas and water cannons at Pride march participants. In 2016, the march was banned in Istanbul citing “safeguarding security and public order” as the main reason. In 2017, in the capital Ankara, the government imposed an indefinite, blanket ban on Pride events, relying on its “state of emergency” powers vested in the government following a military coup in 2016. Similarly, in Istanbul, the Pride parade was banned due to security concerns the same year. The event was yet again banned in 2018 on security grounds even though many defied the ban by marching in Istanbul before police intervened, using tear gas canisters and water cannons.  In 2019, police intervened as crowds celebrated Istanbul's 17th pride march. Last year, the march was canceled due to COVID-19 restrictions.
The last authorized march took place in 2014.