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In Turkey, hate crimes targeting the LGBTIQ+ audience have been increasing. As in the last couple of years, on 27th of July this year, police intervened at the 19th Istanbul LGBTI+ Pride Parade violently. Pride marches organized almost all over the world. However in Turkey, pride marches are not allowed in most of the cities, and citizens are exposed to inhumane police intervention.

In Turkey, instead of ensuring our safety, people in the ruling government use discriminating speech against the LGBTIQ+ individuals which encourage people to commit even more hate crimes in a society where discrimination is at its peak.

President Erdoğan, who said before the 2002 elections, "It is imperative that homosexuals be legally protected"; now ignores LGBT with the words "LGBT, there is no such thing, this country is national, spiritual and is walking towards the future with these values". In other words, LGBTI+ is a mass that is ignored, accused of deviance, exposed to increasing hate crimes, and perhaps most discriminated against by the public. No matter how much you deny our existence, LGBTIQ+ are here and and we will continue to exist.

We express our demands even more loudly, without giving up.

Wherever you are in the world, please support our requests below. Help us get our voices heard by signing and sharing the petition.

Our demands:
1. Add the phrase "sexual orientation" to Article 10 of the Constitution, which states that everyone is equal.

2. The phrase "sexual orientation" should be added to the second paragraph of article 3, article 122 and article 115 of the Turkish Penal Code No. 5237, and those who commit hate crimes should be punished in the most severe way.

3. Necessary arrangements should be made in the Turkish Civil Code for LGBTI+ individuals to marry and adopt.