Turkish transexual takes on top brass
24th September 2008
A FAMED Turkish transsexual singer appeared in court here today to answer charges of turning the public against military service, an offence punishable by three years in prison.
Bulent Ersoy, 56, was charged after she said that if she had a son, she would not let him go into the army to fight separatist Kurdish rebels, whose 24-year campaign for self-rule in the southeast has claimed more than 40,000 lives.
She maintained her innocence before the court, while standing by her remarks.
"I spoke in the name of humanity and even if I am condemned to death, I will repeat the same: we have to find a solution (to the Kurdish conflict) instead of killing each other," Ersoy told the judge.
"I never said people should not send their sons to the army," she said. "I never said anything that constitutes a crime."
Greeted by a crowd of media, Ersoy arrived at the court in a black limousine, wearing sunglasses, and refused to speak to journalists.
It was the second hearing in the case and Ersoy risked being forcibly brought before the judge if she had not shown up after failing to appear at the first hearing.
Back in February, she said on a television show: "The motherland is of course indivisible, but to knowingly send these youths to their deaths?... Why do we fall for this trap?"
The European Union, which Turkey is seeking to join, has often criticised the country for restricting free speech.
One of Turkey's most popular singers, Ersoy has enjoyed fame as a stage performer and movie star before and after her sex change operation in 1981.
Turkish men generally take pride in doing military service and the army has for years topped opinion polls as the country's most respected institution.
Source: The Australian