TurkishDailyNews.com
Istanbul – Starting from illegal arrests to media portrayal of the events, a series of human rights violations have taken place, argue gay, lesbian, transvestite and transsexual nongovernmental organizations Kaos GL and Pembe Hayat (Pink Life) LGBTT Association in a press release regarding events surrounding the arrest of what the media termed a transvestite gang.
Eighteen members of the G?kuşagı (Rainbow) Association, an association for transvestites, transsexuals, gays, and lesbians in Bursa, were taken into custody on Sept. 2 on charges of forming a gang to commit crimes, being an associate with a gang, and inciting prostitution. The Bursa public prosecutor’s office is continuing its investigation of the group.
The establishing of organizations and associations is a right for gays and transsexuals as well. It is unacceptable that the security forces and the media defined the establishing of the association as becoming a gang’ and reflected the association as gay organization, read the statement.