Turkish authorities said on Saturday that an annual LGBT Pride march in Istanbul's Taksim Square would be banned due to "safety concerns". Pride organisers said they would defy the ban.
"This march is organised in order to fight against the violence and discrimination fuelled by that governorship decision," the organisers said.
"We would like to inform the press and the public that we will go ahead with our prideful march with the same ambition as we had before."
For more than a decade, the İstanbul Pride has attracted tens of thousands of participants, making it one of largest gatherings celebrating lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans (LGBT) rights.
It will be the fourth year running that Istanbul's LGBT march has been blocked by city authorities. Three years ago police used tear gas and water cannon to disperse participant after organisers said they had been refused permission because it coincided with the holy month of Ramadan.
COMMUNIST LGBTs MOVIE SCREENING BANNED
On Thursday, Ankara Governor’s Office has banned the movie screening event of Communist LGBTs group.
The office said such events can "incite hatred and enmity" among different fractions of the society, from which "danger" can arise.
The ban came after the Ankara Communist LGBTs community announced they would screen the 2014 British LGBT-related historical comedy-drama film "Pride" at the Nazım Hikmet Cultural Center.
Slamming the ban, the Communist LGBTs group said the decision ignored and refused to see LGBT members as equal citizens of the society.
"With these bans, neither societal peace nor public order can be attained. Public space cannot be under the monopoly of a ‘sensitive fraction’ as has been pointed out by the governor’s office! It should not be forgotten that the equal citizenship demand cannot be banned on the basis of anyone’s sexual orientation, gender identity, and sexual identity!" the Communist LGBTs said.
