Article author:
Associated Press
Ankara, Turkey (AP) — Police in the Turkish capital disbanded the LGBTQ Pride march on Tuesday and detained dozens of people.
Turkish authorities have banned LGBTQ events, but about 50 people with rainbow flags still marched towards the main park to celebrate Pride Month.
Police officers blocked the group from arriving at the park and detained participants on a busy street in central Ankara.
Some of the marches were driven to the ground, angering passers-by, trying to physically intervene, and begging police to let them go. A police officer in plain clothes was seen pushing them away.
Organizers said at least 30 people were detained.
A small group of Islams who see the LGBTQ community as a threat held an opposition demonstration near the park.
Turkey was previously one of the few Muslim-dominated countries to allow pride marches. The first event took place in 2003, the year after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's party came to power.
In recent years, the government has taken a strict approach to public events by groups that do not express their religiously conservative views. Numerous police arrests and the use of tear gas and plastic pellets were accompanied by pride events.
More than 300 LGBTQ people were temporarily detained after a pride event in Istanbul was banned at the end of last month.
