Russian anti-LGBT law
Anti-LGBT law | |
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Federal Assembly | |
Long title
| |
Signed by | SR) |
First reading | 11 June 2013 (State Duma) |
Second reading | 27 June 2013 (Federation Council) |
Related legislation | |
On Protecting Children from Information Harmful to Their Health and Development | |
Summary | |
Censors information about the existence of the LGBT community | |
Keywords | |
Censorship LGBT rights in Russia | |
Status: In force |
Part of a series on |
LGBT rights |
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Lesbian ∙ Gay ∙ Bisexual ∙ Transgender |
LGBT portal |
"For the Purpose of Protecting Children from Information Advocating a Denial of Traditional Family Values"[a] is a law of Russia. It was unanimously passed by the State Duma on 11 June 2013 (with only one member abstaining—Ilya Ponomarev),[7] unanimously passed by the Federation Council on 27 June 2013,[9] and signed into law by President Vladimir Putin on 30 June 2013.[6]
The stated purpose of the
The support of the
In December 2022, an amendment to the law was signed into law by Putin, prohibiting the distribution of "propaganda of non-traditional relationships" among any age group. It also prohibits the distribution of materials that promote gender dysphoria among minors.
Background
Despite the fact that the cities of
In 2010, Russia was fined by the European Court of Human Rights under allegations by Alexeyev that cities were discriminating against gays by refusing to approve pride parades. Although claiming a risk of violence, the court interpreted the decisions as being in support of groups which oppose such demonstrations.[16] In March 2012, a Russian judge blocked the establishment of a Pride House in Sochi for the 2014 Winter Olympics, ruling that it would "undermine the security of Russian society", and that it contradicted with public morality and policies "in the area of family motherhood and childhood protection."[17] In August 2012, Moscow upheld a ruling blocking Nikolay Alexeyev's requests for 100 years' worth of permission to hold Moscow Pride annually, citing the possibility of public disorder.[18][19]
The bill "
The 2013 amendment, which added "propaganda of non-traditional sexual relationships" as a class of harmful content under the law was, according to the Government of Russia, intended to protect children from being exposed to content that portrays homosexuality as being a "behavioural norm". Emphasis was placed upon a goal to protect "traditional" family values; bill author Yelena Mizulina (the chair of the Duma's Committee on Family, Women, and Children, who has been described by some as a "moral crusader"),[8][25][26] argued that "traditional" relations between a man and a woman required special protection under Russian law.[6][24][27][28] The amendment also expanded upon similar laws enacted by several Russian regions, including Ryazan, Arkhangelsk (who repealed its law shortly after the passing of the federal version), and Saint Petersburg.[29]
Contents
Article 1 of the bill amended On Protecting Children from Information Harmful to Their Health and Development with a provision classifying "propaganda of non-traditional sexual relationships" as a class of materials that must not be distributed among minors. The term is defined as materials that are "[aimed] at causing minors to form non-traditional sexual predispositions, notions of attractiveness of non-traditional sexual relationships, distorted ideas about the equal social value of traditional and non-traditional sexual relationships, or imposing information about non-traditional sexual relationships which raises interest in such relationships insofar as these acts do not amount to a criminal offence."
Article 2 makes similar amendments to "On basic guarantees for the rights of the child in the Russian Federation", commanding the government to protect children from such material.[24]
Article 3 of the bill amended the Code of the Russian Federation on Administrative Offenses with Article 6.21, which prescribes penalties for violations of the propaganda ban: Russian citizens found guilty can receive fines of up to 5,000 rubles, and public officials can receive fines of up to 50,000 rubles. Organizations or businesses can be fined up to 1 million rubles and be forced to cease operations for up to 90 days. Foreigners may be arrested and detained for up to 15 days then deported, or fined up to 5,000 rubles and deported. The fines for individuals are much higher if the offense was committed using mass media or internet.[24]
Reaction
According to a survey conducted in June 2013 by the state-owned All-Russian Center for the Study of Public Opinion (also known as VTsIOM), at least 90 percent of Russians surveyed were in favour of the law.[11] Over 100 conservative groups worldwide signed a petition in support for the law, with Larry Jacobs, manager of the World Congress of Families, supporting its aim to "prohibit advocacy aimed at involving minors in a lifestyle that would imperil their physical and moral health."[32] President of Russia Vladimir Putin answered to early objections to the then-proposed bill in April 2013 by stating that "I want everyone to understand that in Russia there are no infringements on sexual minorities' rights. They're people, just like everyone else, and they enjoy full rights and freedoms".[33] He went on to say that he fully intended to sign the bill because the Russian people demanded it.[27] As he put it, "Can you imagine an organization promoting pedophilia in Russia? I think people in many Russian regions would have started to take up arms.... The same is true for sexual minorities: I can hardly imagine same-sex marriages being allowed in Chechnya. Can you imagine it? It would have resulted in human casualties."[27] Putin also mentioned that he was concerned about Russia's low birth rate, as same-sex relationships do not produce children.[34] In August 2013, Russian Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko also defended the law, equating it to protecting children from content that glorifies alcohol abuse or drug addiction. He also argued that the controversy over the law and its effects was "invented" by the Western media.[35]
Criticism
The passing of the law was met with major international backlash, especially from the Western world, as critics considered it an attempt to effectively ban the promotion of LGBT rights and culture in the country. Article 19 disputed the claimed intent of the law, and felt that many of the terms used within were too ambiguous, such as the aforementioned "non-traditional sexual relationships", and "raises interest in". The organization argued that it "feasibly could apply to any information regarding sexual orientation or gender identity that does not fit with what the State considers as in-line with 'tradition'." The term "among minors" was also criticized as being ambiguous, since it is unclear whether it refers to being in the presence of minors, or any place where minors could be present. They argued that "predicting the presence of children in any space, on-line or off-line, is quite impossible and is a variable that the proponent of any expression will rarely be in absolute control of."[24]
The law was condemned by
The legislation reportedly led to an increase in
In January 2014, a letter, co-written by chemist Sir Harry Kroto and actor Sir Ian McKellen and co-signed by 27 Nobel laureates from the fields of science and the arts, was sent to Vladimir Putin urging him to repeal the propaganda law as it "inhibits the freedom of local and foreign LGBT communities."[48] In February 2014, the activist group Queer Nation announced a planned protest in New York City outside the Russian consulate on 6 February 2014, timed to coincide with the opening ceremonies of the 2014 Winter Olympics.[49] The same day, gay rights group All Out similarly coordinated worldwide protests in London, New York City, Paris, and Rio de Janeiro.[50] On 8 February 2014, a flash mob was held in Cambridge, England, featuring same-sex couples embracing and hugging, as part of a video project known as "From Russia With Love".[51]
The TV documentary
Incompatibility with the European Convention of Human Rights
There is a general consensus that the law violates the
The Council of Europe's advisory body on constitutional law, the Venice Commission, passed a resolution in 2013 stating that bans on "propaganda of homosexuality" "are incompatible with ECHR and international human rights standards" for several reasons. First, these bans were worded too vaguely to satisfy the requirement in Article 10 ECHR that limits on freedom of expression must be "prescribed by law". Second, "homosexuality as a variation of sexual orientation, is protected under the ECHR and as such, cannot be deemed contrary to morals by public authorities, in the sense of Article 10 § 2 of The ECHR". Third, the laws only target "propaganda of homosexuality" but not "propaganda of heterosexuality", which amounts to discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation under Article 14 ECHR.[62]
Effects on the level of hate crime against LGBTQ
Hate crimes became more prevalent as a direct consequence of the "gay propaganda law". The introduction of this discriminatory legislation caused a disturbing chain reaction. Across the country, numerous individuals, sometimes with implicit support from authorities, engaged in acts of violence against LGBTQ individuals. Some of those individuals organized hate groups that viewed the elimination of LGBTQ individuals as a means of restoring societal order.[63]
The Russian government does not officially record hate crimes against the LGBTQ community, perpetuating a narrative that such individuals do not exist. Instead, authorities make statements such as "We don't have those kinds of people here. We don't have any gays. You cannot kill those who do not exist".[64]
Overall, the number of crimes perpetrated on an annual basis since the enactment of the "gay propaganda" law has been three times higher than prior to the law. This has been reported by a number of research projects and NGOs (two Russian NGOs—LGBT Initiative Group Stimul and SOVA Center and two international organization—OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights – ODIHR).[65][66][67] In addition to this quantitative change, crimes against LGBTQ people have changed qualitatively: since the 2013 law, not only have they have become more violent, more often premeditated and more often committed by a group of perpetrators.[68]
The increase in the number of hate crimes
Between 2013 and 2018 there was a threefold increase in the number of hate crimes against LGBTQ people. Such crimes existed before 2013, but the level of violence increased significantly after the introduction of the discriminatory legislation. The increase was recorded in the following year,[69] and it remained on a higher level throughout the decade.[67] It was reported that between 2010 and 2020 there were 1056 hate crimes committed against 853 individuals, with 365 fatalities. The number of crimes after the "gay propaganda" law was enacted is three times higher than before (46 in 2010 compared to 138 in 2015).[67]
These incidents include violent attacks, murders, threats, destruction of property, robberies and others.[67]
After 2013 the crimes against gay people became more violent—research shows that 67% of hate crime incidents have indications of "extreme violence".[67]
Additionally, the crimes became more elaborate, there were more premeditated crimes, committed with preparation (oftentimes by a group of perpetrators with a purposeful selection of a homosexual target)—for three years in a row (2017, 2018, 2019) there was an increase in organized hate crimes against LGBTQ, attributed to the activity of homophobic hate groups.[67] In most of the cases those hate groups used dating apps and websites in order to "hunt" homosexuals. Those attacks would oftentimes include physical abuse and harassment, the videos of attacks are disseminated on the Internet.[70][71]
One of the most prevalent hate group—Occupy Pedophilia became very active in the aftermath of "the gay propaganda law". Launched by Maxim Martsinkevich, a.k.a. Tesak, at the peak of its activity it was present in 40 regions of Russia.[70] The ideology of this hate group was described in Tesak's book Restruct (2012), where he specifically addresses homosexuality, stating that it "cannot be cured" and therefore needs to be exterminated:
Restrukt [Tesak's follower] is heterosexual. In all his actions, he relies on the laws of nature, therefore he does not allow any tolerance for homosexuals. He hates them, like all other vices. However, this one, unlike some of the others, cannot be cured. There might be former smokers and former alcoholics, but there cannot be former faggots[63]
Between 2010 and 2020 the research identified 205 cases of hate crimes committed by various homophobic hate groups. Moreover, the introduction of the "gay propaganda law" had a noticeable effect on this—the number of cases grew from 2 in 2010 to 38 in 2014. Many of those crimes are committed by Tesak, his followers or copycat movements.[63]
Protests
A number of protests were held against the law, both locally and internationally. Activists demonstrated outside
On 12 October 2013, the day following National Coming Out Day, a protest organized by at least 15 activists was held in Saint Petersburg. The protest site was occupied by a large number of demonstrators, some of whom were dressed as Russian Orthodox priests and Cossacks.[74] In total, 67 protestors were arrested for creating a public disturbance.[75]
Activists also called for a boycott of Stolichnaya vodka, who had prominently branded itself as a Russian vodka (going as far as to dub itself "[the] Mother of All Vodkas from The Motherland of Vodka" in an ad campaign). However, its Luxembourg-based parent company, Soiuzplodoimport, responded to the boycott effort, noting that the company was not technically Russian, did not support the government's opinion on homosexuality, and described itself as a "fervent supporter and friend" of LGBT people.[76]
Proposed similar laws in Kyrgyzstan
In 2014, a bill modeled after the Russian anti-gay law was proposed in the parliament of Kyrgyzstan; the measure, which "drew a welter of criticism from multiple rights groups, governments, the United Nations Human Rights Council and the European parliament," would provide for even harsher penalties than the Russian law.[77] The bill passed its first two readings by wide margins (79–7 and then 90–2) but faltered after two of the legislation's lead sponsors failed to win reelection.[77][78] In 2016, the legislation was again raised in parliament, but was held up in subcommittee.[77]
Prosecutions and other effects
The first arrest made under the propaganda law occurred just hours after it was passed: 24-year-old activist Dmitry Isakov was arrested in Kazan for publicly holding a sign reading "Freedom to the Gays and Lesbians of Russia. Down With Fascists and Homophobes", and ultimately fined 4,000 rubles (US$115). Isakov had performed a similar protest in the same location the previous day as a "test" run, but was later caught in an altercation with police officers who targeted his pro-gay activism, and arrested him for swearing. He would be released without charge, but pledged to return there the next day to show that he would "not be cowed by such pressure." Isakov also claimed that he had been fired from his job at a bank as a result of the conviction.[43][79]
In December 2013, Nikolay Alexeyev and Yaroslav Yevtushenko were fined 4,000 rubles for picketing outside a children's library in Arkhangelsk with banners reading, "Gays aren't made, they're born!" Their appeal was denied.[80]
In January 2014, Alexander Suturin, editor-in-chief of the Khabarovsk newspaper Molodoi Dalnevostochnik, was fined 50,000 rubles (US$1,400) for publishing a news story discussing the teacher Alexander Yermoshkin, who had been fired for self-admittedly holding "rainbow flash mobs" in Khabarovsk with his students, and was subsequently attacked by right-wing extremists because of his sexuality. The fine centred around a quote in the article by the teacher, who stated that his very existence was "effective proof that homosexuality is normal."[81][82][83]
Elena Klimova has been charged under the law multiple times for operating
In November 2014, one day after current
In March 2018, Roskomnadzor ordered the prominent website Gay.ru to be blocked in the country due to the law.[91][92][93]
Effects on sports
The
The implications of the law on Russia's hosting of two major international sporting events, the
Athletes and supporters used the Olympics as leverage for further campaigns against the propaganda law. A number of athletes
Action was leveraged directly against Olympic sponsors and partners as well; in late-August 2013, the
Effects on video games
In May 2014, it was revealed that in accordance with the propaganda law, the
In December 2016, the video game
In December 2016, Blizzard Entertainment geo-blocked a tie-in web comic for its game Overwatch in Russia for containing a scene of the character Tracer, who was confirmed as being lesbian, kissing her partner, another woman. Blizzard cited the gay propaganda law as reasoning for the block. The game itself is not blocked in the country.[123][124]
In February 2021, Miitopia received an 18+ rating due to the ability of same-sex Miis being able to form "relationships" with each other despite no actual sexual content whatsoever being present in the game.[125]
Expansion of the propaganda law
In July 2022, Communist politician Nina Ostanina co-sponsored a bill that would ban "the denial of family values" and the promotion of "non-traditional sexual orientations." In an interview, she further stated that "a traditional family is a union of a man and woman, it’s children, it’s a multi-generational family."[126][127][128]
In September 2022, at a political ceremony in which Russia formally annexed regions of Ukraine, Putin said: "Do we really want to have here, in our country, in Russia, 'Parent No. 1, No. 2, No. 3' instead of 'mom' and 'dad?' Do we really want perversions that lead to degradation and extinction to be imposed in our schools from the primary grades?"[129]
On 27 October 2022, the State Duma unanimously passed a proposed bill that expands the gay propaganda law to cover any age group, instead of only minors. The bill also adds materials that give minors a "desire to change their sex", or constitute the promotion of "paedophilia", to the categories of materials covered by the law.[130][131][132] The bill was unanimously passed by the Federation Council on 2 December 2022 and signed into law by Putin on 5 December 2022.[133]
Deputy Secretary of the General Council of Putin's United Russia, Alexander Khinshtein, is one of the architects of anti-LGBT legislation that widens a prohibition of "LGBT propaganda" and restricts the "demonstration" of LGBT behaviour, saying, "LGBT today is an element of hybrid warfare and in this hybrid warfare we must protect our values, our society and our children."[134]
Supporters of the bill consider it as a response to the
See also
- Bayev and Others v. Russia
- Concerns and controversies at the 2014 Winter Olympics
- List of 2018 FIFA World Cup controversies
- Hungarian anti-LGBT law
- Florida Parental Rights in Education Act
Notes
References
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Narrator (Stephen Fry): The man behind the new law is the Deputy of St. Petersburg, Vitaly Milanov. He believes that he can prevent a new generation of Russians from becoming gay be banning so-called gay propaganda. It's created an impossible situation for gay parents here who could now be accused of promoting their homosexuality to their own children. ... Olga, a local activist, has arranged for me to meet some of those living with the fallout from the law. ... Irina and Olga have been together for 12 years, and each have one child from previous relationships: 20-year old Daniel, and Christina, who at 16 is still considered a minor.
STEPHEN FRY: According to this new law, every day you are breaking the law by promoting homosexuality to Christina. (Olga and Irina nodding)
OLGA (in Russian): Yes, not only Christina but her friends too! According to Mr Milinov gay families are perverts and their children are even worse. It's very insulting and hard for the kids, especially Christina. All of that was very unpleasant for her to hear.
STEPHEN FRY: Does it actually seriously worry you that the day may come when you as a family are threatened by this new law?
IRINA (in Russian): Of course we are afraid because we really don't know what's going to happen next in the country. There is even aggression in the streets and it is getting worse.
OLGA (in Russian): We are living in a very difficult period of time historically.
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President Putin signed a law that criminalizes the so-called propaganda of nontraditional sexual relations to minors. The law effectively limits the rights of free expression and assembly for citizens who wish to publicly advocate for LGBT rights or express the opinion that homosexuality is normal (see sections 2.a. and 2.b.). On December 2, Roskomnadzor issued a list of clarifying criteria and examples of so-called LGBT propaganda, which includes materials that "directly or indirectly approve of people who are in nontraditional sexual relationships." LGBT persons reported dramatically heightened societal stigma and discrimination, which some attributed to increasing official promotion of intolerance and homophobia. Gay rights activists asserted that the majority of LGBT persons hid their orientation due to fear of losing their jobs or their homes as well as the threat of violence
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- ISSN 2312-3605.
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- ^ ISSN 1573-2851.
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- osce.org. Retrieved 14 April 2023.
- ^ S2CID 256661219.
- ISSN 1863-0421.
- S2CID 210497632.
- ^ ISSN 1744-0572.
- ISSN 1071-4421.
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Further reading
- Hylton, Emily; Wirtz, Andrea L.; Zelaya, Carla E.; Latkin, Carl; Peryshkina, Alena; Mogilnyi, Vladmir; Dzhigun, Petr; Kostetskaya, Irina; Galai, Noya; Beyrer, Chris (2017). "Sexual Identity, Stigma, and Depression: the Role of the "Anti-gay Propaganda Law" in Mental Health among Men Who Have Sex with Men in Moscow, Russia". Journal of Urban Health. 94 (3): 319–329. PMID 28243868.
- Kondakov, Alexander; Shtorn, Evgeny (2021). "Sex, Alcohol, and Soul: Violent Reactions to Coming Out after the "Gay Propaganda" Law in Russia". The Russian Review. 80 (1): 37–55. S2CID 234194944.
- Kondakov, Alexander (2021). "The influence of the 'gay-propaganda' law on violence against LGBTIQ people in Russia: Evidence from criminal court rulings". European Journal of Criminology. 18 (6): 940–959. S2CID 210497632.
- Moss, Kevin (2021). "Russia's Queer Science, or How Anti‐LGBT Scholarship is Made". The Russian Review. 80 (1): 17–36. S2CID 234307412.
- Utkin, Roman (2021). "Queer Vulnerability and Russian Poetry after the "Gay Propaganda" Law". The Russian Review. 80 (1): 77–99. S2CID 234327909.