Russian deputies voted this Thursday a toughening of the discriminatory law that represses the alleged “LGBT propaganda”a new sign of the strengthening of the conservative line in that country.
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Repressive laws have multiplied in Russia since the arrival to power of the president Vladimir Putinwho in recent years has turned the defense of conservative values into his battle horse and has not stopped denouncing the “decadence”, even the “Satanism”, of his opponents.
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“During the plenary session, the deputies of the Duma (parliament) unanimously approved in the first reading the amendments to the legislation that prohibit the promotion of non-traditional sexual relations,” the legislature reported on its website.
The draft still has to undergo two readingsbefore going to the Upper House, and that it can be sent to the Russian president for promulgation.
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This amendment toughens a 2013 law that criminalizes the dissemination of what it calls “gay propaganda” to minors, and that now vetoes “denial of family values” and “promotion of non-traditional sexual orientations” directed at adults.
These prohibitions concern “the media, the internet, literature and cinema” and also advertising. “Films that promote non-traditional sexual relationships will not receive a certification for their broadcast,” the Duma warned.
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Films that promote non-traditional sexual relations will not receive certification for broadcast
The text also vetoes “information likely to induce the desire to change sex” aimed at minors. Any infraction carries heavy fines and foreigners who break this rule may be expelled, according to the Duma.
Under the bill, people who commit this “crime” could be fined between $815 and $6,520while organizations could receive penalties of up to $81,500.
The strictest sanctions would apply to “propaganda” shared with minors through the media or the internetor when “committed” by a foreign citizen or stateless person.
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The risks of the law
Amnesty International (AI) affirmed that the first reading approval by the Russian State Duma or Lower House of this project will increase homophobia with the permission of the Russian state.
“In Russia’s new era of repression, state-sanctioned homophobia is about to reach a whole new level,” AI’s director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia said in a statement. Marie Struthers.
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In Russia’s new era of repression, state-sanctioned homophobia is about to reach a whole new level
“The new ‘gay propaganda’ bill not only blatantly deprives LGBTI people of their right to freedom of expression and supports their discrimination, it probably it will also lead to an increase in violent attacks and other hate crimes against them“, held.
Struthers recalled that nine years ago the Russian authorities already enacted a law that prohibited the promotion of “non-traditional sexual relations” among minors, under the pretext of protecting young people from alleged “harmful” influences.
Now, he said, the amended bill to extend the ban on anti-LGBTI “propaganda” to all age groups is very likely “used to shut down NGOs, block community-themed websites, stifle social media pages, and intimidate activists with exorbitant fines”.
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“Without a doubt, it will encourage more homophobia and abhorrent discrimination,” he stressed. “From the banning of movies and books with openly LGBTI characters to the ostracism of LGBTI people, the passage of this new law will be another disaster for human rights,” she said.
For his part, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, called on Russian lawmakers to stop the process of expanding the anti-LGBTI law in the country.
The amendment to the 2013 law, approved in first reading this Thursday by the Duma (Lower House), “would expand a law that has previously been described by human rights experts as discriminatory, violating freedom of expression and leading to an increase in hate speech and hate crimes“Turk stressed.
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The ongoing legislative change “would worsen the situation by expanding the scope of the law to a complete ban on communication on the subject,” UN Human Rights Office spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani added at a press conference, citing the high commissioner.
Russian lawmakers must reject the amendment and even withdraw the existing 2013 law, “urgently adopting measures to prohibit and combat discrimination and violence based on sexual orientation and gender identity“added the spokeswoman.
“The exclusion, stigmatization and discrimination of any group in a society can generate violence and have a negative impact on the entire society,” he stressed.
INTERNATIONAL WRITING
*With information from EFE and AFP
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