Türkiye has blocked an LGBTQ+ cruise ship chartered by a US travel company from docking at two Turkish ports, saying the voyage was incompatible with the country’s “moral values” and forcing organizers to change the Mediterranean itinerary.
The governor’s office said the ship would not be allowed to stop at the Aegean port of Kuşadası because it had been leased by groups “known for behaviors incompatible with the fabric of our society and our moral values.”
The governor’s office said “there is absolutely no possibility” that the group would be permitted to visit the province “for an event of this nature.”
Atlantis Events, a US company that specializes in vacations for LGBTQ+ travelers, said Turkish officials had canceled both of the ship’s planned stops in Turkiye, which forced the company to revise the itinerary. Instead of visiting Kuşadası and İstanbul, the ship will now call at Cairo and the Greek island of Crete.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has banned Pride marches in İstanbul since 2015, citing security and public order concerns. Rights groups say restrictions on LGBTQ+ events and organizations have expanded in recent years, while Erdoğan has repeatedly described LGBTQ+ rights as incompatible with traditional family values.
