Peter Tatchell: Russian Anti-Gay Law Condemned

Russian Anti-Gay Law Condemned
 
Violation of Russian Constitution & European Human Rights Law
 
London, UK - 11 June 2013
 
Human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell, who was beaten and arrested four times for participating in successive Moscow Gay Pride parades, from 2007 to 2011, said:
 
“This new law is symptomatic of Putin’s increasing authoritarianism and his crackdown on civil society. It violates the Russian constitution, which guarantees freedom of expression, and the European Convention on Human Rights, which Russia has signed and pledged to uphold.
 
“Although the law is ostensibly aimed at prohibiting the dissemination of so-called ‘gay propaganda’ to young persons under 18, in reality it will criminalise any public advocacy of gay equality or same-sex HIV education where a young person could potentially see it.
 
“In practice, gay marches, festivals, posters, magazines, books, welfare advice and safer sex education will be at risk of criminal prosecution.
 
“It is a blanket censorship of any public expression of same-sex love or gay human rights.
 
“This is likely to result in the purging of many books, films and plays from libraries, schools, theatres and cinemas, including many classic works of art and literature.
 
“It is one of the harshest laws against gay freedom of expression anywhere in the world,” said Mr Tatchell.

ENDS

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