Solidarity Against the Crackdown on LGBTQI+ People in Turkey: Conscientious Objector Trans Activist Deniz Hikmet Hazer Arrested

Conscientious objector trans activist Deniz Hikmet Hazer was arrested following simultaneous police operations targeting LGBTQI+ associations and activists in Turkey.

As part of an investigation conducted under the name "My Family is Safe", police raids were carried out last weekend across various cities in Turkey, targeting the homes of LGBTQI+ individuals, association offices, and local businesses. The Ministry of Justice announced that legal proceedings have been initiated against 162 people, 9 associations, and 13 businesses in 15 cities. Recent data show that a journalist and 7 board and audit members of Kaos GL Association were arrested in Ankara, 27 people in Mersin, and 5 people in Aydın. In İstanbul, over 100 people remain in police custody.

Among those arrested is trans activist Deniz Hikmet Hazer, who declared conscientious objection last year on December 10, Human Rights Day, stating: "The state demands that I obey, remain silent, and hand over my body and identity to military purposes. But I do not obey. I refuse violence. I refuse militarism." We are deeply concerned by this arrest which we learned about through our member organization Conscientious Objection Watch in Turkey and by the escalating wave of repression.

Militarism and the heteronormative state logic always walk hand in hand. These operations, carried out under the guise of "security", are an extension of militarist control mechanisms into homes and streets; their aim is to fuel hatred while establishing control over bodies, identities, and living spaces. As Deniz highlighted in their conscientious objection declaration, conscientious objection is not only a rejection of militarist violence, but also an objection to the patriarchal control regime surrounding our bodies and identities.

The stigmatisation of detained and arrested activists is an alarming attack on civic space and freedom of association. We demand the immediate release of all detained and arrested human rights defenders.

As War Resisters’ International, we express our solidarity with the LGBTQI+ movement and all human rights defenders in Turkey, and we support the international call for solidarity on September 18 against this climate of repression. Defending existence and freedom against violence, militarism, and hatred is not a crime.

We stand with conscientious objector trans activist Deniz Hikmet Hazer, arrested in these operations in Turkey, and with all those resisting policies of hatred.