Turkish military gay

More from GlobalPost: 'Honor killing' targets Turkey's LGBTs. So far, you’ve done many interviews with gays, homosexuals and transsexuals about what they’ve done to avoid serving in the military. Instead, he offered to provide a picture of himself kissing a man, which they accepted, according to BBC.

His case is currently being reviewed. The Turkish military considers homosexuality as a ‘psycho-sexual disorder’, following the opinion of a paper from the American Psychiatric Association. It’s a national duty that comes with deep-rooted expectations of masculinity and patriotism.

Though the photos exempted Gokhan from military service his certificate denotes him as having a "psychosexual illness" he said that the ordeal still haunts him. Military service is mandatory for all Turkish men, and they can only avoid it if they are ill, disabled, or homosexual, according to the BBC.

Turkey's military hospitals still define homosexuality as an illness, according to the BBC, and use a document about sexuality by the American Psychiatric Association that dates back to as their guide. More from GlobalPost: The Rainbow Struggle: A global battle over gay rights Special report Another gay Turk applying for a "pink certificate," Gokhan, came prepared with graphic photographs of himself having sexual intercourse.

The World has weathered many storms, and we remain steadfast in our commitment to being your trusted source for human-centered international news, shared with integrity and care. However, it has made other changes to conform to EU human rights policies, according to the Post.

Every Turkish man is called to serve—but not all are allowed to. We believe public media is about truth and access for all. Will you support The World? Openly gay men are exempt from military service in Turkey, but they have to go to extraordinary lengths to prove their sexuality.

The Turkish government has also refused to support laws against discrimination, and allows politicians to make homophobic statements, the Huffington Post reported. We are sustained by listeners like you. But not all men are allowed to serve. In Turkey, every man is expected to serve in the military.

More from GlobalPost: The Rainbow Struggle: A global battle over gay rights Special report. Compulsory military service in Turkey Officially, all Turkish men between the ages of 20 and 41 are required to serve in the military for a period of between 6 and 12 months, depending on their rank.

More from GlobalPost: Opinion: A globalized LGBT rights fight. Without federal support, local stations, especially in rural and underserved areas, face deep cuts or even closure. Being a gay man in the Turkish military Ayşe ARMAN - ISTANBUL “I am homosexual and I just came back from military service.

A BBC report says gay Turks wishing to avoid military service must prove their homosexuality, often by submitting explicit photos or. Turkish honour guard soldiers salute during a service. In Turkey, pink certificate (Turkish: Pembe tezkere) is the colloquial name for a military discharge certificate given to those who are discharged or considered exempt from military service due to their sexual orientation.

For decades, if you said you were gay, you were told to prove it. I want to tell you why I went there and what I’ve encountered with. Turkish soldiers march while bearing the coffins of their fallen comrades, killed in a helicopter crash, during a ceremony at the Kabul International Airport on March 17, Turkey's homosexuals must go to humiliating lengths in order to get a "pink certificate," which exempts them from military service because of their sexuality, BBC News reported.

Istanbul's Gay Pride Parade, which is the only march of its kind in a majority-Muslim country, will mark its 10th anniversary this year. However, though many army physicians realize the impossibility of "diagnosing" sexual orientation, they require men to answer questions, submit graphic photos, and take personality tests to qualify for the piece of paper that allows gays to avoid army service and dangerous deployments to fight Kurdish rebels, CBC News reported.

Though the Ottoman empire legalized gay sex in , Turkey does not recognize gay marriage or civil unions, according to Edge Boston. Since then, such pseudo-science has been widely debunked, but the Turkish military maintains its position on the issue. The Turkish Armed Forces Health Regulation, under Article 17 of "Mental Health and Diseases," explains that the case of "advanced sexual disorders," which are "explicitly.

Another gay Turk applying for a "pink certificate," Gokhan, came prepared with graphic photographs of himself having sexual intercourse. Vital public service alerts, news, storytelling, and programming like The World will be impacted. Now more than ever, we need your help to support our global reporting work and power the future of The World.

The requests for proof are not systematic, and are often up to the whims of military doctors, BBC reported. Turkish military officers asked Ahmet for a picture of himself in drag, which he refused.