Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, right, shakes hands with Elon Musk, left, Tesla and SpaceX CEO, prior to their meeting in Ankara, Turkey, Wednesday, Nov. 8, 2017. Erdogan's office did not immediately provide details on the meeting, however it comes days after a consortium of five Turkish businesses, including mobile phone operator Turkcell, launched a joint venture to design and produce a Turkish-made car, a joint venture was launched under Erdogan's urging. (Pool Photo via AP)
November 09, 2017 - 6:00 AM
ANKARA, Turkey - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has accused Turkey's main opposition party of moving away from the country's moral values after a small opposition-run municipality installed a quota for LGBTI candidates running for a neighbourhood committee.
In a speech to local administrators Thursday, Erdogan said he believed the people would give the opposition party "the lesson they deserve" at an election in 2019.
Erdogan, a pious Muslim, slammed the pro-secular main opposition Republican people's Party, or CHP, saying "we have no business with those who have declared war on the people's values."
Although homosexuality is not banned in Turkey, rights activists say LGBTI members face discrimination and stigma.
Erdogan's ruling party hails from Turkey's Islamic movement.
News from © The Associated Press, 2017