– The police were ready before the parade started. They started with tear gas and shooting plastic bullets just a few minutes ago, says Norwegian Thomas Gjedebo. He is in Ankara to take part in this year’s Pride parade and to see if it goes smoothly. The parade is at the Middle East Technical University (METU). Since the area was closed to everyone but students, Gjedebo did not let in. He is sitting in a hotel room nearby and is following the situation online. According to Amnesty, police have seized several moments involved in the Pride train at the University of Turkey. Photo: Amnesty Turkey Gjedebo is in contact with the organization that works with gay students at Turkish universities. A few minutes ago, he was able to confirm what many feared. The police intervened, says Gjedebo. Videos published by the student organization at the university, show people with flags walking on the train. The videos must be from today’s parade. There are also published videos of the police running after the participants. – This is a predicted disaster, says Gjedebo. Must have arrested students Amnesty in Turkey wrote in a press release that they wanted people at the university to follow the train. They have today published several videos and photos that will show students participating in the parade. – Police forces came towards the library and warned the students to spread. Immediately after the warning, the police began to intervene and arrest the students, the organization writes in a Twitter post. The video will show that several people were arrested by the police at the university. In the post, they have published a video showing police running after the students. You can also see that the police arrest some of the participants in the train. In another post, the organization also writes that the police used tear gas during the parade. Several arrested at the previous demonstration Thomas Gjedebo is in Ankara to participate in the parade. He did not enter the area. Photo: Private There has been tension over whether the parade would be carried out at all. The university’s management has already banned this year’s event. In 2019, students and staff who participated in the peaceful demonstration on campus were met with brutal behavior from the police. – Three years ago, a peaceful Pride parade at METU was met by police who used pepper spray, plastic bullets and tear gas. Participants were arrested and dragged through court cases before they were released, says Amnesty director in a press release. – It is extremely sad that no lessons have been learned from this incident, Amnesty Turkey writes on Twitter today. Won award Turkey is one of the countries in Europe where it is worst to be queer. It writes the organization ILGA Europe. Despite the fact that it is not illegal to be queer in Turkey, it is challenging to carry out Pride trains. In 2015, among other things, a ban was imposed on Pride parades in Istanbul. Participants have since been met with water cannons and rubber bullets. This also has queer students known on the body. At the same time, they have received support around the world. The student organization that was behind the parade in Ankara in 2019, won the Students’ Peace Prize two years later. Activists demonstrate in Ankara, in the summer of 2021. Even after this demonstration, several were arrested by the police. Photo: Burhan Ozbilici / AP The prize is awarded every other year. It goes to students or organizations that work to promote peace, human rights and democracy. It was Gjedebo who led the Students’ Peace Prize when the Turkish student organization received the prize. – In 2019, there were the same type of reactions. Many remained in the judicial system for two years, risking imprisonment. Before this year’s parade, it was announced that there would be stronger reactions than then, says Gjedebo.
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Police break up Pride train at Ankara University in Turkey – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
