A LGBTQ+ cruise ship has been banned from docking in Turkey, with local authorities claiming the group goes against the country’s “moral values”.
The cruise, running from 5 to 15 July, departed from Athens to tour Greek islands and the Dalmatian coast. It was then scheduled to stop in Kuşadası in Turkey, followed by two days in Istanbul, before making its final call in Trieste near Venice.
Local authorities in Turkey have said the “event” was cancelled because the ship was chartered by groups “known for behaviours incompatible with the fabric of our society and our moral values”, CNN reported.
“I think the really tragic part is when a country that is so dependent on tourism, as Turkey is, makes a decision to basically expel or remove a group of any type of tourists, forget any affiliation or sexual orientation,” Rich Campbell, the president and CEO of Atlantis Events, which organised the trip, told The Independent from the cruise which has set sail.
“It sends a very cruel message that says, ‘Look, not everyone is welcome here’,” he added.
Atlantis Events, which specialises in LGBTQ+ cruises and holidays, chartered the Virgin Voyages-owned ship Scarlet Lady for the sailing that will host around 2,000 guests, most of whom are from the United States.
Mr Campbell said this was the first time since the sailings started that the company had been told they cannot berth in Turkey.
He added that the guests aboard have been very supportive of Atlantis Events, but their next task now is to decipher at what point they can visit the country again.
“What they [the guests] want to know is, when can we go back to Turkey?” Mr Campbell said.
“Our next move is to figure out when can we go back to Turkey. What will it take? And I don’t know the answer to that, but it’s something that we will certainly endeavour to do, and we’ll work with them, and hopefully that’s something that in a couple of years will not be an issue anymore.”
American singer Patti LuPone, who is due to perform on the cruise next week, said on social media that she was “shocked” at the news, saying that passengers “deserve so much better”.
“A ship – a magnificent ship – full of gay men. And me. Denied entry to Turkey simply because of who is on board. I am furious, but I am sailing as the ship will make other ports of call,” she wrote.
Authorities from Aydin province, where the Turkish port of Kuşadası is located, said there is “absolutely no possibility of the group in question visiting our province for an event of this nature”.
Atlantis Events said that after Turkey’s denial of entry, it will also not call at Istanbul and has changed its itinerary to include Cairo in Egypt and the Greek island of Crete.
Despite the unexpected changes in destinations, Mr Campbell said the rest of the cruise is going “fantastically well”.
While same sex relationships are not against the law in Turkey, LGBTQ+ people do not have any legal protection from discrimination in the country.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who heads the ruling AK Party, has taken aim at the LGBTQ+ community during speeches over the years.
In 2023, Mr Erdoğan said at an AK Party congress that he did not “recognise LGBT” and promised to combat “perverse” trends which he said aimed to destroy the institution of family in Turkey.
Pride celebrations in Istanbul have been banned since 2015 by Turkish authorities, and attempts from local organisations to run the event anyway have been met with police crackdowns. Last week, at least 50 people were arrested in the city for holding a Pride event.
The Independent has contacted the Aydın Metropolitan Municipal Council, the Turkish ministry of culture and tourism and the Turkish Tourism Board for comment.
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