As Hungary begins to close the chapter on its anti-LGBT era by dropping criminal charges against Pride March organizers, Türkiye is moving in a sharply opposite direction proposals to jail LGBT people.
Turkish media reported in recent days that the Erdoğan government has circulated a brief to its Justice and Development Party lawmakers proposing legal amendments to increase criminalization of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people. The reported text mirrors the wording of a draft law leaked to the media in October 2025 but which, following an outcry by civil society groups in Türkiye and internationally, never made it for consideration before parliament.
The proposal would punish vaguely worded “attitudes and behaviors contrary to biological sex and public morality”, and any act of praising or promoting such conduct, with prison sentences of up to three years.
The proposal would also impose sweeping new restrictions on access to gender-affirming health care by raising the minimum age for sex reassignment to 25, imposing mandatory sterilization before undergoing the procedure, and banning anyone with children from having it done. In Türkiye, reassignment surgery is a prerequisite for a person to obtain legal gender recognition.
Gender-affirming surgeries would in future require four health evaluations at highly government-dependent hospitals. Healthcare providers who perform surgeries without complying with these restrictions could face up to seven years in prison and the and trans people themselves three years.
The proposal is incompatible with the rights to privacy, to recognition before the law, and the right to health under international human rights law.
For the past few years, the Erdogan government has adopted hateful rhetoric against LGBT people, while waving the banner of protecting “family values.” Officials have banned most Pride marches and other LGBT public events for a decade. Courts weaponize existing criminal code provisions, including those on “obscenity,” to arbitrarily prosecute LGBT people and affiliated organizations.
In December 2025, a court ruled to close down one LGBT organization on the basis of social media posts it found “obscene” and “could encourage [LGBT] behaviors.” In May 2026, a popular singer was acquitted after standing trial for a song allegedly about same-sex desire.
Introducing a law that could further criminalize LGBT people and arbitrarily restrict gender-affirming healthcare would further enshrine systematic discrimination and violate Türkiye’s international human rights obligations.
