Esra Ateş, a trans woman, was murdered outside her apartment in Istanbul
Esra Ateş, a trans woman, was killed in front of her Istanbul apartment early on Saturday (25 August).
What happened?
Ateş lived in the Beyoğlu district of Istanbul. Sources say she was arguing with a person loitering outside her apartment building on Friday night. As a result, the man stabbed her and cut her throat.
According to Evrensel, Ateş was a sex worker and the man she was arguing with was one of her clients.
Law enforcement officials and crime scene investigators are currently looking into the suspect and reviewing evidence. The forensic morgue removed Ateş’s body.
Thanks to footage from security cameras, police were able to detain the murderer. The killer had Ateş’s mobile phone on him at the time.
This was not the first time Ateş was attacked. Her friends claim she was attacked just a few days prior to her murder, also in front of her apartment building.
The internet’s reaction
Trans rights activists took to Twitter to share the news of Esra Ateş’s murder.
This trans woman #EsraAtes was murdered today by men in #Istanbul #TransRights pic.twitter.com/lnCBvLo3cU
— Michelle Demishevich (@demishevich) August 25, 2018
#SayHerName #TransRightsAreHumanRights Last week, Vanessa Campos – a migrant trans woman and sex worker – was killed in Paris. Yesterday, Esra Ates (40), a Turkish trans woman, was killed in Istanbul. In both cases, they were murdered by a group of men. Stop this violence. pic.twitter.com/X6rgdNA5OC
— Women’s March Netherlands (@womensmarchnl) August 26, 2018
“Transların gazeteci, avukat, doktor, politikacı veya bir başka meslek sahibi olmasını bile destekleyemeyen, onlara çalışma imkanı sunamayan bir toplumda her zaman işkence de olur, cinayet de”@demishevich#SansürsüzTürkiye#TransCinayetleriPolitiktir#EsraAtes#HandeKader#LGBTİ pic.twitter.com/iICRiKWdMK
— COSMO (@COSMO__ARD) August 26, 2018
#LGBTI lost one of their members in a horrible way. #EsraAtes from Beyoglu, Istanbul found dead on the street. Her throat was cut. Unspeakable violence and killings are becoming a part of routine daily news. pic.twitter.com/NHKlXwwmvc
— Jack Aydogdu (@oktayjaydogdu) August 25, 2018
Trans woman Esra Ateş was killed in Beyoğlu, #Istanbul. Esra has been the second trans victim in the same week following Begüm, another woman who was killed a few days ago. The killer shaved off Begüm’s hair. #TransMurdersArePolitical #TransCinayetleriPolitiktir https://t.co/s6TODba2Fl
— willow ⚢ (@burcin_ttk) August 25, 2018
Anything else?
Although homosexuality is legal in Turkey, LGBTI people still face many challenges their straight and cisgender counterparts do not. Earlier this summer, police detained LGBTI activists for participating in a Pride march in Istanbul.
