Russia proposes extending ‘gay propaganda’ law to all adults

gaytimes.co.uk:

Russia’s ‘gay propaganda’ law could be extended to all adults in the country later this year, a senior legislator has suggested.

Signed by Vladimir Putin in 2013, it bans the promotion of all “non-traditional” sexual relationships among minors. It has been used as justification to stop Pride marches, prevent minors from watching content with LGBTQ+ themes and to detain activists.

Now, Alexander Khinshtei, the head of the State Duma’s information committee, has suggested that the law should go even further. “We propose to generally extend the ban on such propaganda regardless of the age of the audience (offline, in the media, on the internet, social networks and online cinemas),” he wrote on Telegram.

If the changes go into effect, those seen as attempting to promote homosexuality could incur a fine, according to Reuters. It comes after parliamentary speaker Vyacheslav Volodin said last week that “non-traditional values” could be banned across Russia since it quit the Council of Europe human rights watchdog earlier this year. “Demands to legalise same-sex marriages in Russia are a thing of the past,” he stated. “Attempts to impose alien values on our society have failed.” Despite homosexuality being legal in Russia since 1993, LGBTQ+ people face ongoing societal challenges in the country.