[Commentary] [Turkey] Government says no gays in our families
Stephanie Stevens
Government says no gays in our families
Friday, February 26, 2010
KRISTEN STEVENS
To suit the Turkish government’s intolerance for gay people, the
Council of Europe has changed its declaration of children’s rights to
allow state discrimination that puts lives at risk. The threats the
council was trying to eliminate just grew bigger.
The text in question from the Council of Europe’s declaration of
children’s rights said: “Currently, the family [is a concept] composed
of different lifestyles, and children in Europe grow up in family
forms that can change during the life of children.”
No, no, Turkey says, not gays; if you’re saying that gays are part of
families with children, we have to ask you to change Europe’s version
of children’s rights… Alas, that’s what happened this week.
The declaration now includes the phrase: “These family forms change
from one country to another.” Do they? The whole point of the
declaration was to support kids whose parents might be shunned by
certain countries and societies.
Pulling an alarm bell in Europe to underline that Turkey excludes gay
people from families is not even a political move. It is moral
activism and indecent diplomacy that is dangerous for gay people,
their children and society.
Public statements matter
This unnecessary protest is not only discriminatory but also
exacerbates a current climate of violence against people with sexual
orientations outside the mainstream. Homophobia has led to murder in a
number of cases in Turkey. Last Tuesday in Istanbul someone broke into
a transgender woman’s apartment, killing her by slitting her throat
and stabbing her 17 times. At least eight transgender people have been
killed in Istanbul and Ankara since November 2008.
Covering the Gay Pride Parade for the Associated Press in Jerusalem a
few years ago, I watched an Ultra-Orthodox Jewish man stab a father
and a young woman. The Ultra-Orthodox mayor had spoken against the
“immorality” of the parade, no doubt galvanizing this man and others
to attack marchers throughout the day.
Turkey issued a statement this week, saying: “We do not accept gay
marriages and we also do not accept the institution of homosexual
family parenting.” Selma Aliye Kavaf, the minister responsible for
families and women, said she informed the Council of Europe about
Turkey’s “sensitivity on the different forms of families” and that
they made the “necessary changes.” Was there anything necessary about
this?
Shame on the council. Kids can’t reject or exchange gay parents for
straight ones; they only suffer when separated from them. Children in
Turkey without parents can only hope that they will be taken in by
loving parents, gay or straight. By law, the state can remove them
from the parents or deny them inheritance.
The Turkish Council of State has ruled that homosexuals should not
have custody of children, but it is not a must under the law. It is
precisely children in this gray area that the Council of Europe aimed
to protect. Instead they have failed them.
Furthermore, at Turkey’s urging, the Council of Europe has undermined
its very existence by adding: “The relevant articles will be evaluated
under the framework of national regulations.” Why on Earth did they
meet if not to put forward common practices that support kids from all
types of families?
Turkey just slammed the door on families and children, and in the
process, left it open to unenlightened interpretation and
politicization in other countries.
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