Turkey's President Erdogan raises objection over 'LGBT colours' at UN office in New York

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has raised objections to what he referred to as "LGBT colours" adorning the United Nations headquarters, which had been festively decorated to promote sustainable development goals (SDGs). Erdogan expressed his desire to discuss this matter with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, as reported by Turkish media. This stance aligns with Erdogan government's recent, more stringent approach toward LGBT freedoms in Turkey.

Erdogan articulated his concerns in an interview with Turkish media, stating, "One of the issues that bothers me the most... is that when entering the United Nations General Assembly, you see the LGBT colours on steps and other places. How many LGBT are there in the world right now? However much right they have on these steps, those against LGBT have as much right as well."

Clarification on the display & Erdogan's remarks

It appeared that some diplomatic confusion may have arisen, as Erdogan may have mistaken the 17 different colours associated with sustainable development goals—displayed for a recent summit—with the rainbow Pride flag, which is widely recognised as the symbol of the global LGBT+ community. It is important to note that there are no Pride colours on display at the UN headquarters.

The 17 sustainable development goals, adopted by world leaders in 2015 with a target deadline of 2030, constitute a global agenda focused on addressing critical issues such as ending hunger, extreme poverty, climate change, inequality, and promoting gender equality.

Although homosexuality is not criminalised in Turkey, it faces significant societal hostility, and police crackdowns on Pride parades have become increasingly stringent over the years.

The original rainbow flag, created by Gilbert Baker in 1978, was designed to celebrate the gay and lesbian movement. It initially featured eight coloured stripes stacked atop each other, each symbolising a specific concept: pink for sex, red for life, orange for healing, yellow for sunlight, green for nature, turquoise for magic, indigo for serenity, and violet for spirit. Subsequently, due to a shortage of pink fabric and legibility concerns, the flag evolved into the familiar six-colour rainbow design widely used today.