23/12/2025 | Writer: Oğulcan Özgenç
The District Governorate banned Lambdaİstanbul’s “Tea&Talk” event in 2023. While the court of first instance annulled the ban, the annulment was overturned on appeal. The association has taken the case to the Council of State.
The ban imposed by the Kadıköy District Governorate in 2023 on a tea gathering regularly organized for nearly ten years by the Lambdaİstanbul Association has been taken to the Council of State.
The ban targeting the event scheduled for 15 June 2023 was annulled by the Istanbul 2nd Administrative Court following a lawsuit filed by the association’s lawyers. Despite not submitting even a defense petition during the first instance proceedings, the District Governorate appealed the annulment decision.
Annulment of the ban overturned on appeal
The Istanbul Regional Administrative Court, 10th Administrative Chamber, which reviewed the appeal, accepted the district governorate’s request despite the administration’s failure to present any verifiable, document based evidence demonstrating either “a concrete threat to the event” or the existence of “intelligence information.” Accordingly, the Chamber overturned the first instance court’s annulment decision.
Court asked about intelligence information; governorate failed to submit any evidence
The association brought the case before the Council of State. In the petition of appeal, it was emphasized that the regional administrative court asked the administration whether there was any intelligence regarding a potential provocative act while reviewing the ban decision, yet the administration failed to submit any information or documents in response.
The petition stated that merely claiming, in abstract terms, that “there is intelligence information” is insufficient, and that no concrete security justification capable of legitimizing the ban had been put forward:
“The administration’s abstract assertion that intelligence information exists cannot constitute grounds for overturning the annulment, as no information or documents demonstrating the existence of such intelligence have been submitted to the case file. Had there been, for example, a report indicating that someone intended to attack the event, this could have been subject to discussion. However, in the present case, no information or documents were submitted, and no concrete security justification for the ban was provided.”
“The court places full trust in the report submitted by law enforcement”
The petition further stated that, in overturning the annulment decision, the regional administrative court placed full trust in the report prepared by law enforcement authorities while disregarding other considerations. It was underlined that the court did not go beyond the assessments made by the police, and that overturning the annulment decision was contrary to the Constitution and the case law of the European Court of Human Rights.
No “justification” beyond social media posts
The petition noted that an examination of the police records in the case file revealed that, apart from “social media posts,” the administration had no concrete intelligence regarding a disturbance of public order, preparations for an armed attack, or an organized criminal attempt.
The association requested that the case before the Council of State be heard in an oral hearing.
What happened?
The association’s “Tea&Talk” event, which has been organized for years in various cafes in Istanbul for English speakers, was banned by the Kadıköy District Governorate during Pride Month in 2023. The ban decision was formally served on the cafe where the event was scheduled to take place.
The justification for the ban included statements claiming that the event could “threaten social harmony,” “violate national, moral, and humanitarian values,” and “cause public outrage.”
Tags: human rights, arts and culture, life, trans, lgbti
