Amnesty International has launched a campaign urging Turkish authorities to drop charges against 11 LGBTQ+ activists who are being prosecuted over social media posts the authorities labelled as “obscene.”
Emirhan Şaşmaz, Kerem Dikmen and nine other board members of the İzmir-based Young LGBTI+ Association are facing trial for alleged violations of Turkey’s Law on Associations.
The İzmir Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office filed an indictment on October 28, 2025, also citing an alleged violation of Article 41 of the constitution on protection of the family and children’s rights. The İzmir 47th Court of First Instance accepted the indictment and scheduled the first hearing for April 8.
The charges are based on an investigation report that labeled five artistic designs shared by the association between 2019 and 2022 as “obscene.”
In a separate case the İzmir 3rd Court of First Instance ordered the association’s closure on December 11, 2025. The association has appealed the ruling, with the case currently pending.
“Accusations of ‘obscenity’ and the use of vague ‘morality’ laws to prosecute the association’s board members and close the group represent an unlawful restriction of their right to freedom of association and expression,” Amnesty said.
Amnesty International has launched an online petition urging the İzmir chief public prosecutor to immediately drop all charges against the activists and to uphold Turkey’s obligations under international human rights law.
The human rights watchdog said the same obscenity allegations had previously been investigated, with prosecutors issuing a decision of non-prosecution in August 2025.
Thirty human rights organizations had earlier condemned the court’s closure ruling, saying the ruling violates the freedoms of association and expression and criminalizes human rights advocacy.
Turkey was ranked 47th out of 49 countries in the 2025 Rainbow Index, an annual assessment of LGBTQ+ rights, which placed it among the bottom five in Europe.
