2,000 men on gay cruise go to Muslim countries and get denied docking (travel)

[Zinjanthropos]

For the second time this week, a gay cruise in the Mediterranean was denied entry.

Ever think the Turkish and Egyptian governments were protecting cruisers by not allowing docking? Also avoiding cost of cleaning up the mess, literally and politically, should docking occur. Smart move.

No, Muslim governments uphold Islamic religious standards. Turkey even cited their "moral standards".

Regardless of whatever the govt’s upheld, the decision to not allow docking saved cruiser hides. Moral standards then, inadvertently protected the gay cruisers in these cases. The decision to try and dock, even if only asking, was 100% immoral? I mean good chance passengers never make it back to the boat if it happens.

[Syne]

Regardless of whatever the govt’s upheld, the decision to not allow docking saved cruiser hides. Moral standards then, inadvertently protected the gay cruisers in these cases. The decision to try and dock, even if only asking, was 100% immoral? I mean good chance passengers never make it back to the boat if it happens.

True enough there. The cruise line or organizers displayed criminal negligence in including those stops.

[Magical Realist]

Regardless of whatever the govt’s upheld, the decision to not allow docking saved cruiser hides.

Not likely. The consensus of the people--the always more liberal mainstream culture--is always way ahead of the conservative Muslim regimes running the govt in terms of tolerance and equal rights. There would've been no issue at all if the govt hadn't had such a conniption fit over it.

"Istanbul Pride was once the largest LGBTQ+ demonstration in the Muslim world, beginning in 2003 and growing to attract upwards of 100,000 participants by 2013. However, since the government instituted a ban on all Pride events in 2015, the environment for LGBTQ+ individuals has become increasingly restrictive. Although homosexuality itself is not a crime in Turkey, high-ranking officials and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan have consistently used hostile rhetoric against the community, leading to the strict suppression of public gatherings, the closure of queer venues, and arbitrary detentions."

[Syne]

LGBTQ+ individuals in both Egypt and Turkey face severe, state-sanctioned repression. While neither country explicitly outlaws homosexuality, both use laws regarding "public morality" to jail citizens, encourage vigilante violence, and strictly suppress LGBTQ+ visibility.

Human rights and travel organizations, such as Human Rights Watch, strongly advise extreme caution if visiting either country.

For travelers, maintaining a very low profile and avoiding public displays of affection is heavily recommended to prevent targeting by local authorities or vigilantes.
- gemini

Would those on that cruise have known to keep a low profile? If so, maybe they shouldn't have openly marketed it as a gay cruise... if they really wanted to make those stops.

[Zinjanthropos]

Regardless of whatever the govt’s upheld, the decision to not allow docking saved cruiser hides. Moral standards then, inadvertently protected the gay cruisers in these cases. The decision to try and dock, even if only asking, was 100% immoral? I mean good chance passengers never make it back to the boat if it happens.

True enough there. The cruise line or organizers displayed criminal negligence in including those stops.

I was getting to that. Cruise line’s moral compass is nowhere near a match with that of the Turkish and Egyptian authorities if so. The Scarlet Lady was name of ship and from Cambridge Dictionary:

The term originates from the Book of Revelation in the Christian New Testament, where the "Whore of Babylon" is described as a sinful woman dressed in purple and scarlet. In modern English, it is an old-fashioned, disapproving idiom for a sexually promiscuous woman or a prostitute.

Not exactly a name Islam may approve of. Was it a hoax? Did the Scarlet Lady, Virgin, Richard Branson or the captain say they asked and were denied? Can’t see it, sounds fictitious or a publicity stunt for some group.

[Magical Realist]

LGBTQ+ individuals in both Egypt and Turkey face severe, state-sanctioned repression. While neither country explicitly outlaws homosexuality, both use laws regarding "public morality" to jail citizens, encourage vigilante violence, and strictly suppress LGBTQ+ visibility.

Human rights and travel organizations, such as Human Rights Watch, strongly advise extreme caution if visiting either country.

    For travelers, maintaining a very low profile and avoiding public displays of affection is heavily recommended to prevent targeting by local authorities or vigilantes.
- gemini

Would those on that cruise have known to keep a low profile? If so, maybe they shouldn't have openly marketed it as a gay cruise... if they really wanted to make those stops.

Yep...all the enforced policy of a homophobic fundamentalist Muslim govt. Has nothing to do with the actual cultures of those countries. Did you know the great Sufi poet Rumi was gay?

[Syne]

Cruise ships have to contact the port authority to gain docking approval beforehand. Apparently this cruise got denied from Turkey as they left Athens, and then got denied by Egypt after they tried to reroute there instead of Turkey.

Yeah, with a name like Scarlet Lady, it certainly sounds like everyone involved should have known exactly what to expect. But Western leftists are in denial about other cultures being radically different from their own.

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Yep...all the enforced policy of a homophobic fundamentalist Muslim govt. Has nothing to do with the actual cultures of those countries. Did you know the great Sufi poet Rumi was gay?

Maybe you missed the bits about "vigilante violence."

[Magical Realist]

Maybe you missed the bits about "vigilante violence."

You mean like the guys who pistol-whipped Matthew Shepard to death in Wyoming just because he was gay? Yeah, we live with that everyday in every culture. And we're not going back in the closet for it. Welcome to 2026.

[Syne]

Maybe you also missed the part about the vigilante violence being "encouraged" by the government. But thanks for being so eager to illustrate by point about Western leftists' views of other cultures. You're such a doll.

[Magical Realist]

Maybe you also missed the part about the vigilante violence being "encouraged" by the government.

Exactly what one would expect from a govt trying to spread its own peculiar anti-LGBTQ sentiment and policies since it came into power in 2015. One only HAS to encourage violence where there is no tendency for violence..