Turkey LGBTQ crackdown tied to 2028 vote, activist says

Turkish LGBTQ activist Yildiz Tar said a sweeping crackdown on LGBTQ people marks “the start of the election campaign” for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan ahead of an expected re-election bid in 2028.

Tar, a 36-year-old member of Kaos GL, one of Turkey's leading LGBTQ rights organisations, spoke in Ankara days after authorities began a major operation against activists and community members.

The operation began last weekend with dozens of social media accounts blocked, followed by overnight raids on bars, nightclubs, NGOs and the homes of LGBTQ members. The government said the measures were intended to protect children and the institution of the family.

Tar said the timing was no coincidence because an election date was announced days later. If all legal procedures are completed, the vote will take place on April 16, 2028, a month before the formal end of Erdogan's term.

“This operation was related to the election, it was like a start of the election campaign,” Tar said.

Justice Minister Akin Gurlek has vowed to press ahead with the campaign to protect traditional family values. Tar said he believed the authorities could arrest him at any moment on charges such as obscenity, aiding prostitution or financial ties to foreign countries, accusations he said had been used against some of those detained.

Same-sex relations are legal in Turkey, but hostility toward LGBTQ people remains widespread, including at senior levels of government. Turkey's LGBTQ community has faced increasing pressure since the government declared 2026 the start of its “Decade of the Family”.

In Istanbul, Ankara and Izmir, demonstrators were rounded up by police. More than 100 were held in Istanbul before being released 36 hours later. Police also fired tear gas at about 200 people protesting in Izmir, and two protesters, including a lawyer, were detained.

The pro-Kurdish DEM party previously said the crackdown undermined the peace process it is mediating between Ankara and jailed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan. The European Commission said it was concerned about arrests and legal proceedings involving LGBTIQ+ activists, human rights associations and businesses.