Erdogan’s scare tactics regarding ‘LGBT propaganda’ to target the media

Ankara. Turkey’s already tiny democratic space continues to shrink. Another independent news outlet, T24, has been targeted. Its website and social media accounts have been blocked by the Turkish Telecommunications Authority (BTK) on charges of “LGBT propaganda”. T24, Turkey’s largest and most prestigious independent news portal, has been blocked for allegedly spreading “LGBT propaganda”, following a smear campaign launched on social media by Islamist foundations close to the Turkish government. The decision to block access was announced as part of the Interior Minister’s massive crackdown on LGBT organisations, dubbed “My Family Is Safe”. The court of first instance had rejected the request to block access on 25 September, but, after reviewing the appeal, subsequently issued the blocking order. The ruling states that 118 related pieces of content – including articles and social media posts by T24 – “aim to undermine the Turkish family structure” and that the content “could negatively influence young people’s development in terms of sexual orientation and gender identity”. On the basis of these allegations, it has been reported that the decision was taken to block access and remove the content from the publication.

T24, founded in 2009, is an independent, liberal-leaning news organisation covering national politics, foreign policy, the economy, justice and crime, as well as culture and social issues. The broadcaster has stated on its website that it will appeal against the decision and will pursue all “available legal avenues” to overturn the ruling. The ‘My Family Is Safe’ campaign is a nationwide crackdown launched in early September against LGBT organisations, activists and journalists accused of promoting the indoctrination of minors, pornography and prostitution. The LGBT community is accused of using its practices to destroy the ‘family’ with its Turkish, non-Western values. The Minister of the Interior speaks explicitly of defending the family, which he claims is threatened by the values of a West regarded as degenerate and prone to deviance; a West that propagates values which, according to Erdogan’s new worldview, do not belong to local culture and tradition, but have been introduced by a sick West. Since then, the Turkish authorities have arrested more than 80 people as part of this crackdown. Among those arrested are the journalist Tugba Tekerek and the well-known zenne dancer, Arif Saçli. Hundreds of social media accounts belonging to LGBTQ+ organisations, activists, journalists and media outlets have been blocked or restricted, including Amnesty International Turkey’s X account.

The blocking of access to T24 and its social media accounts comes at a time of increasing repression of dissent and freedom of expression online, whilst the Turkish government is also grappling with one of the country’s biggest financial scandals: an investigation into a ‘Ponzi scheme’ involving more than $18 billion from 455,000 individual investors, which is now in liquidation. This massive financial fraud involved paying returns to existing investors with funds contributed by new subscribers, without any real investment or actual profit being generated.

This week, the authorities have blocked access to over 190 X accounts, including those of prominent journalists, economists and politicians, due to comments relating to the corruption scandal that Erdogan wishes to conceal from national and international public opinion. In addition to executives and brokers from numerous companies, Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya, the deputy leader of the ruling Justice and Development Party (Erdogan’s AKP), has also been caught up in the wave of arrests and resignations; she stepped down from her post following allegations that she and her husband had made astronomical profits from shares linked to the funds at the centre of the scandal. Observers note that these developments have little to do with protecting the family.