CONFERENCE ON COMBATTING TRANSPHOBIC HATRED:

 “WE NEED A LAW!”

 Best Hotel Kavaklıdere, ANKARA

18 - 19 November 2011

18 November 2011 

12.30 – 13.00

 Opening: “We Are Together Against Hatred…”

Buse Kılıçkaya, Board Chair of Pembe Hayat

“Hate Crimes Are Crimes Against Humanity!”

Murat Çekiç, Director of Amnesty Turkey

“Neither Illness Nor A Crime…”

Aykan Erdemir, MP of Republican People’s Party

“We Need A Hate Crimes Legislation”

13.15 – 15.15

Violence Against Trans and Legislative Demands

INFORMATION: This panel focuses on the examples of hate crimes and hate speech which have been reported through the information gathered via local trans groups, media monitoring and face-to-face interviews with the victims of hate crimes in 2011. In addition, the panel provides information as regards to the access of trans people to justice, discriminatory and prejudiced attitudes of the judicial authorities and the obligations of the Turkish Government according to the national and international legislations.

Moderator: Attr. Sinem Hun – Pembe Hayat Association

Kemal Ördek, Secretary General of Pembe Hayat

“Transphobic Hate Crimes in 2011 in Turkey: Hate Operations Have Continued”

Deniz Solmaz, Activist of Black Pink Triangle LGBTT Association 

“Violence in Izmir Surrounding Trans Persons”

Attr. Vildan Yirmibeşoğlu, Secretary General of Association for Support and Training of Women Candidates

“Violence That Targets Trans People, Opportunities and Insufficiencies As Regards to Legal and De Facto Protection"

15.30 – 17.30

Transphobic Hate Speech in Media and Strategies for Struggle

INFORMATION: This panel, while discussing the language used in the media which triggers hatred, demonstrates the examples of media coverages in the local and national media in 2011 in Turkey. The Panel, which will also focus on the media understanding in the UK, will provide us with the information on how the trans community fights against the media news that have a transphobic character.

Moderator: Göksun Yazıcı, Magazine Express

Prof. Yasemin İnceoğlu, Galatasaray University Faculty of Communications

“Othering” in Media and the Language of Hatred”

Barış Sulu, Kaos GL Association 

“Examples of Hate Speech in National Media Through 2011”

Paris Scarlet Lees, Trans Media Watch

“Strategies Employed by Trans Media Watch Against Hate Speech in the UK”

19.00 – 21.00

Cocktail

19 November 2011

13.00 – 15.00 

Examples of Legal Changes in Europe Against Hate Crimes Towards Trans and Strategies for Struggle

INFORMATION: This panel, brings human rights defenders from Europe who have been carrying out advocacy work towards their Governments for a trans-inclusive hate crimes legislation together. While OSCE-OIDHR and Transgender Europe will focus on reporting and advocacy work on hate crimes and hate speech Europe-wide, activists from Croatia and Scotland will highlight their experiences and successes of advocacy towards their Governments.

Moderator: Kemal Ördek, Secretary General of Pembe Hayat Association

Mathilde Fruncillo, Advisor to the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights

“Transphobic Hate Crimes Examples from Europe in OSCE Annual Reports”

Richard Köhler, Transgender Europe Co-Chair

“Transphobic Violence in Europe and International Advocacy Work of Transgender Europe for Effective Legal Protection of Trans”

James Morton, Coordinator – Scottish Transgender Alliance

“Scottish Hate Crimes Legislation and Legal Gains of the Trans Community”

Sanja Juras, ILGA-Europe Board Member / Founder of Lesbian Group Kontra

“Transphobic Hate Crimes in Croatia and Advocacy Work Carried out Towards the Croatian Government for a Trans-Inclusive Hate Crimes Legislation"

15.15 – 17.15

What Have Politicians Done Against Transphobic Hatred?

INFORMATION: This panel brings parliamentarians both from Turkey and abroad together. During the panel, the works that have been carried out by the parliamentarians in Turkey upon the requests of several NGOs for a hate crimes legislation. At the same time, Hakan Tas – who has been elected to the Berlin Federal Parliament as the openly gay Turkish origined MP – and Anna Grodzka – who has been elected as the first transsexual MP to the Polish Parliament weeks ago, will highlight their works in their countries as regards to trans rights.

Moderator: Feray Salman, General Coordinator of Human Rights Joint Platform

Aylin Nazlıaka, MP of Republican People’s Party, Turkey

Sebahat Tuncel, MP of Peace and Democracy Party, Turkey

Hakan Taş, MP of Berlin Federal Parliament, Die Linke, Germany

Anna Grodzka, MP of Palikot Movement Party, Poland

WE MARCH AGAINST TRANSPHOBIC HATRED…

20 November 2011

Meeting Point:

Sakarya Street, In Front of ISBANKASI, Kızılay – Ankara / 13.00

Rita Hester, was stabbed more than 20 times to death on 20 November 1998 in her house in Boston, USA. The world trans rights movement owned the murder of Rita Hester as a symbol and has kept 20th November each year in the agenda of wider societies as International Trans Day of Remembrance.

Turkey continues to be one of the countries in the world where violence and murders most intensively continue against trans persons. While 8 trans were murdered in 2010 in Turkey, this number is 7 as of the end of October 2011.

In order to say “Stop!” to these murders, to attract the attention of the Government and the law-makers to transphobic hate speech and hate crimes and to invite the broader society to be more sensitive to the issue, we march from Sakarya Street to Yuksel Street on 20 November 2011, at 13.00.

We invite everyone to join us against murders, discrimination, police violence, social exlclusion and the ignorance of the relevant authorities.

TRANS NETWORK MEETING

Best Hotel Kavaklıdere, ANKARA

17 November 2011

We, as trans individuals and trans rights activists, continue to our trans network meetings which has started one year ago in Ankara.

Within a year, we have discussed the problem areas in detail and have suggested solution strategies. In the upcoming period, we shared our suggestions as regards to the applicable campaigns against transphobia.

Since the first meeting, hate operations continued to target us and we have experienced discrimination in every sphere of our lives. Since the beginning of 2011, we were shocked by trans murders once every month. Our trans human rights defender colleagues have been sentenced to imprisonment just because they objected to the arbitrary arrests of the police. Our friends have continued to face sexual and physical attacks, house raids and threats.

We are meeting against all the injustice, lynching and ignorance policies. We gain strength together and we believe that our voice will become more visible in this way.

LEGAL SUPPORT NETWORK MEETING

Best Hotel Kavaklıdere, ANKARA

20 November 2011

Trans persons in Turkey face intensive level of discrimination in every sphere of their lives. Trans persons, who experience physical and psychological attacks, police brutality and arbitrary arrests, impunity for perpetrators of crimes, also experience difficulties in accessing justice due to the limited opportunities.

Even though these problems are quite less in big cities, trans persons in other cities of Turkey face hardships in terms of having the required knowledge on legal issues. Trans persons who can reach the police or the judicial authorities face intensive institutional prejudice and discrimination.

As Pembe Hayat, we bring lawyers who have worked on trans cases and who are willing to provide legal support to the trans victims of rights violations together. Our aim is to establish a legal support network that will have the capacity to provide support to trans persons from different cities of Turkey.

ROUND-TABLE MEETING: “Upholding Rights of Transgender People in Europe - Obligations of Member States Under the Current European Legislative Framework” 

Gordion Hotel, ANKARA

21 November 2011

Transgender Europe (TGEU) brings Government and/or Equality Body representatives and trans rights defenders from Europe together in Ankara; in cooperation with Pembe Hayat. The event is generously supported with the financial contribution of the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights’ Office.

Trans rights defenders together with Government and Equality Body representatives will focus on several issues surrounding trans rights like anti-discrimination and hate crimes on 21 November 2011 at Gordion Hotel. The event aims to establish a dialogue between the trans rights activists and Government officials/Equality Body Representatives from different European countries.