I was beaten by the Turkish police and jailed for 20 days because I ‘looked gay’
- Portuguese tourist Miguel Álvaro now warns others not to go on holiday to Turkey
A tourist has recounted his ordeal at the hands of Turkish police who he says arrested him because he “looked gay” before allegedly detaining him for 20 days.
Miguel Álvaro, from Portugal, was vacationing alone in Istanbul on June 25 when he went out for lunch with a friend and, not being familiar with the city, asked the agents for directions.
To his horror, the tourist said he was surrounded by as many as eight officers and was promptly arrested, PinkNews reports.
“They grabbed my arms and I tried to free myself. One of them hit me in the ribs, they pushed me against a van, they hit me on the shoulder, which started to bleed,’ she recalled.
Mr. Álvaro, who is gay, was unaware that an unauthorized Pride parade was taking place nearby and was met with a heavy police presence.
Miguel Álvaro was on vacation alone in Istanbul on June 25 when he went out for lunch with a friend
Mr. Álvaro, who is gay, was unaware that an unauthorized Pride parade was taking place nearby and was met with a heavy police presence.
“After five hours in the police van, in which they only told me to shut up and shut up, one of them explained to me that they had arrested him because of my appearance,” he told the Portuguese outlet P3.
“They thought I would participate in an unauthorized LGBTI+ march that was taking place nearby because I looked gay. He was in the wrong place at the wrong time.
He says he was kept in a police van for 13 hours before being taken to a police station for processing, where he described maggots in the sheets and other appalling conditions.
His hopes that he could be released shortly thereafter were quickly dashed. The ordeal did not end after his grueling arrest, but continued for weeks after he was transferred to an immigration detention center.
He was driven 17 hours to the eastern border, he said, and was subjected to threats from homophobic inmates for weeks there.
He stated that they hardly gave him any water and hardly slept because he was so afraid of being attacked.
Police officers block protesters during the LGBTQ Pride March in Istanbul, Turkey, on June 25.
Members of the LGBTQ community attend the unauthorized Pride March in Istanbul on June 25.
Protesters sit across from police officers as members of Turkey’s LGBT+ community gather for a pride parade, banned by local authorities.
At least 149 people were detained in Turkey after police violently interfered with Pride celebrations, according to the NGO Human Rights Watch.
It wasn’t until July 12, 20 days after his arrest, that Álvaro says he was finally released.
He told PinkNews that he was “disappointed, broken and mentally drained, but relieved to be somewhere safe.”
He said he is now warning others about the realities of holidays in Turkey, particularly for members of the LGBTQ+ community.
While it is not illegal to be gay in Turkey, the country has become an increasingly hostile place for LGBTQ people in recent years and has banned Pride events since 2015.
Police were out in force throughout the capital and the rest of the country when protesters took to the streets to celebrate in June, despite the ban.
At least 149 people have been detained in Turkey after police violently interfered with Pride celebrations, according to the NGO Human Rights Watch.
I am Rakesh Sharma, I associated with Elite News as an Editor, since 2021. I take care of all the news operations like content, budget, hiring and policy making.