Turkish prosecutors are seeking to dissolve an İstanbul-based LGBTQ rights association, making it at least the third such group targeted for closure in less than two months amid a nationwide crackdown on LGBTQ organizations and activists, the Kaos GL news website reported Tuesday.
The İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office requested the dissolution of the Social Policy, Gender Identity and Sexual Orientation Studies Association (SPoD) in a November 2 indictment.
Prison sentences of between one and three years are sought for four of the organization’s members on charges of violating Turkey’s Law on Associations.
Two of the defendants have been held in pretrial detention since September 16. The İstanbul 27th Criminal Court of First Instance has accepted the indictment, with the first hearing scheduled for November 18 at the İstanbul Courthouse, according to Kaos GL.
The move follows proceedings initiated in September to dissolve two LGBTQ rights associations in the southern province of Mersin — Muamma LGBTİ+ and Mersin 7 Renk LGBTİ+ — as part of the same nationwide operation called “My Family Is Safe.”
According to a statement from SPoD cited by Kaos GL, prosecutors alleged that the association had operated outside the objectives outlined in its bylaws and that its activities were contrary to law and morality.
The association said its 15 years of LGBTQ rights advocacy, including activity reports, events and solidarity initiatives, were cited as grounds for its dissolution.
Founded in 2011, SPoD provides legal and psychosocial support and campaigns against discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
SPoD said the indictment characterized its efforts to promote equal employment opportunities for LGBTQ people as an attempt to create “division within the state.”
It also cited the association’s efforts to establish solidarity networks against discrimination and publicize them on social media as evidence against it.
The group defended the activities cited in the indictment, saying: “Yes, we did all of these things. And we would do them all again!”
“Organizing is not a crime; it is a right. Defending LGBTI+ rights, showing solidarity and coming together are not crimes,” the group said, warning that the dissolution request threatened freedom of association beyond SPoD itself.
SPoD called on rights organizations, unions, professional associations and journalists to attend the November 18 hearing.
The dissolution request comes amid a crackdown that began in September with online restrictions and police raids and has led to the detention of activists and members of LGBTQ organizations.
Authorities have framed the investigations as protecting children, families and public order, citing allegations including obscenity, prostitution and violations of the Law on Associations. Rights groups say legitimate human rights work is being treated as criminal activity.
More than 450 civil society organizations from 65 countries called on Turkey in September to end what they described as the criminalization of LGBTQ rights advocacy and release people detained solely for their human rights work.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) have increasingly portrayed LGBTQ movements as a threat to traditional family values. Erdoğan declared 2025 the “Year of the Family” and designated 2026-2035 the “Decade of Family and Population,” initiatives aimed at strengthening family structures and addressing declining birth rates.
Rights groups have criticized the government’s anti-LGBTQ rhetoric and policies as discriminatory, warning of growing pressure on LGBTQ people and civil society organizations.
