ANKARA, Turkey – Last month, in the southeastern Turkish province of Diyarbakır a gay teenager was allegedly killed by his father and uncle because the boy was gay. According to local members of the LGBT community the powerful tribal family later sought to cover up the whole affair.
The Hürriyet Daily News reported that, “R.A., 17, had allegedly been exposed to violence by his family because of his sexual orientation before seeking refuge at a friend’s house.
“R.A.’s uncle, however, forcibly removed the teenager from his friend’s house; later, the boy reportedly had an argument with his father, after which the latter allegedly shot his son 14 times before he and his brother deposited the body by the side of the road.”
R.A.’s father and uncle have been subsequently arrested for their alleged role in the murder.
A member of the local LGBT community said the family had sought to cover the incident up.
“The family wanted to cover up the murder which happened one month ago because they were a rich and powerful tribal family. They wanted the police to hide the incident,” the person said. “We are subjected to violence, but there is no place where we can make a complaint or search for our rights. Police insult and swear at us, doctors make fun of us.”
Despite homosexual relations being legal in Turkey the country is very socially conservative and widespread discrimination on homosexuality is common.
Turkey does not recognize same-sex marriages, civil unions or domestic partnership benefits and gay men and women are not allowed to serve openly in the military.
