The High Supreme Court of the Republic of Turkey (Yargitay) has decided to assess oral and anal sex as "unnatural sexual acts". Through this decision the list of "unnatural content" in videos which are now forbidden in Turkey consist of the following activities:
Earlier the word "gay" (including its Turkish pronunciation "gey") and "anal" have been banned from Turkish Internet domain names. Any sites containing such words faces immediate closure. The Turkish Telecommunications Directorate in 2011 sent a list of 138 words to Turkish web-hosting firms, ruling the words are not allowed to feature in domain names and websites that do use them will be shut down.
This is a very devious way for the bigots and homophobes in Turkey to legislate, "Let´s forbid gay pornography by not actually forbidding it - which may effect our application for membership in The European Union adversely - instead we forbid the sexual acts that have to be an integral part of ever gay sex film if there is to be any sexual activity at all, except for kissing, caressing and masturbation.
Anatole France (1844–1924) French poet, novelist and journalist once said something like "La loi, dans un grand souci d'égalité, interdit aux riches comme aux pauvres de coucher sous les ponts, de mendier dans les rues et de voler du pain." (The law, in a large concern for equality, forbids rich and poor alike to sleep under bridges, to beg in the streets and to steal bread.)
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- oral sex
- anal sex
- group sex
- SM
- rape
- bestiality
- necrophilia
Possession, distribution and publication of videos with "unnatural content", as well as possession of downloaded material from the Internet, is punishable with four years imprisonment in Turkey.
Earlier the word "gay" (including its Turkish pronunciation "gey") and "anal" have been banned from Turkish Internet domain names. Any sites containing such words faces immediate closure. The Turkish Telecommunications Directorate in 2011 sent a list of 138 words to Turkish web-hosting firms, ruling the words are not allowed to feature in domain names and websites that do use them will be shut down.
This is a very devious way for the bigots and homophobes in Turkey to legislate, "Let´s forbid gay pornography by not actually forbidding it - which may effect our application for membership in The European Union adversely - instead we forbid the sexual acts that have to be an integral part of ever gay sex film if there is to be any sexual activity at all, except for kissing, caressing and masturbation.
Anatole France (1844–1924) French poet, novelist and journalist once said something like "La loi, dans un grand souci d'égalité, interdit aux riches comme aux pauvres de coucher sous les ponts, de mendier dans les rues et de voler du pain." (The law, in a large concern for equality, forbids rich and poor alike to sleep under bridges, to beg in the streets and to steal bread.)
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Somehow all this reminds me of the homophobic Rick "Frothy Mix" Santorum, formerly a United States Senator for Pennsylvania and previously a candidate for the 2012 Republican Party presidential nomination. Santorum equated homosexuality with pedophilia, incest, adultery, bigamy, and bestiality.
This lead to a sublime revenge by gay activist Dan Savage, who is also an American humorist and sex advice columnist, who with the help of his readers redefined the word "santorum" to mean "the frothy mixture of lube and fecal matter that is sometimes the byproduct of anal sex".
I encourage you all to visit Google and search for the word "santorum", in the results please check out the site "Spreading santorum"
OMG. As a hetero I am guilty of at least the first two (and then some) of those "unnatural acts" on the list...
ReplyDeleteIt is not only this. Mainstream gay publications are increasingly facing barriers in publishing. The Islamist government of Turkey is slowly changing a very secular and tolerant society into one that is increasingly resemblant of those that surround it. Turkey still wants to join the EU, and is being pressured to guarantee gay rights. If this door is closed, I would not be surprised to see Turkey ban outright ban homosexuality and drive a very tolerant society in Istanbul back into the closet. Let's hope it does not happen.
ReplyDeleteThey have a good and strong democratic heritage through Kemal Atatürk, lets hope it is so strong they will not break it. Otherwise I agree with you, my friend, the situation is delicate.
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