THE WAR ON HUMAN RIGHTS
DASHA LITVINOVA
November 17, 2023
TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — The Russian Justice Ministry on Friday said it has filed a lawsuit with the nation's Supreme Court to outlaw the LGBTQ+ “international public movement” as extremist, the latest crippling blow against the already beleaguered LGBTQ+ community in the increasingly conservative country.
The ministry said in an online statement announcing the lawsuit that authorities have identified “signs and manifestations of extremist nature” in “the activities of the LGBT movement active" in Russia, including “incitement of social and religious discord.” Russia's Supreme Court has scheduled a hearing to consider the lawsuit for Nov. 30, the ministry said.
It is not yet clear what exactly the label would entail for LGBTQ+ people in Russia if the Supreme Court sides with the Justice Ministry, and the ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. But the move in itself represents the latest, and possibly by far the most drastic, step in the decade-long crackdown on gay rights in Russia unleashed under President Vladimir Putin, who has put “traditional family values” at the cornerstone of his rule.
November 17, 2023
TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — The Russian Justice Ministry on Friday said it has filed a lawsuit with the nation's Supreme Court to outlaw the LGBTQ+ “international public movement” as extremist, the latest crippling blow against the already beleaguered LGBTQ+ community in the increasingly conservative country.
The ministry said in an online statement announcing the lawsuit that authorities have identified “signs and manifestations of extremist nature” in “the activities of the LGBT movement active" in Russia, including “incitement of social and religious discord.” Russia's Supreme Court has scheduled a hearing to consider the lawsuit for Nov. 30, the ministry said.
It is not yet clear what exactly the label would entail for LGBTQ+ people in Russia if the Supreme Court sides with the Justice Ministry, and the ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. But the move in itself represents the latest, and possibly by far the most drastic, step in the decade-long crackdown on gay rights in Russia unleashed under President Vladimir Putin, who has put “traditional family values” at the cornerstone of his rule.
The crackdown, which began a decade ago, slowly but surely chipped away at LGBTQ+ rights. In 2013, the Kremlin adopted the first legislation restricting LGBTQ+ rights, known as the “gay propaganda” law, banning any non-critical public depiction of “nontraditional sexual relations” among minors. In 2020, Putin pushed through a constitutional reform to extend his rule by two more terms that also outlawed same-sex marriage.
In 2022, after sending troops into Ukraine, the Kremlin ramped up its rhetoric about protecting “traditional values” from what it called the West’s “degrading” influence, in what rights advocates saw as an attempt to legitimize the war in Ukraine. That same year, the authorities adopted a law banning propaganda of “nontraditional sexual relations” among adults, too, effectively outlawing any public endorsement of LGBTQ+ people.
Another law passed this year prohibited gender transitioning procedures and gender-affirming care for trans people. The legislation prohibited any “medical interventions aimed at changing the sex of a person,” as well as changing one’s gender in official documents and public records. It also amended Russia’s Family Code by listing gender change as a reason to annul a marriage and adding those “who had changed gender” to a list of people who can’t become foster or adoptive parents.
In 2022, after sending troops into Ukraine, the Kremlin ramped up its rhetoric about protecting “traditional values” from what it called the West’s “degrading” influence, in what rights advocates saw as an attempt to legitimize the war in Ukraine. That same year, the authorities adopted a law banning propaganda of “nontraditional sexual relations” among adults, too, effectively outlawing any public endorsement of LGBTQ+ people.
Another law passed this year prohibited gender transitioning procedures and gender-affirming care for trans people. The legislation prohibited any “medical interventions aimed at changing the sex of a person,” as well as changing one’s gender in official documents and public records. It also amended Russia’s Family Code by listing gender change as a reason to annul a marriage and adding those “who had changed gender” to a list of people who can’t become foster or adoptive parents.
“Do we really want to have here, in our country, in Russia, ‘Parent No. 1, No. 2, No. 3’ instead of ‘mom’ and ‘dad?’” Putin said in September 2022 at a ceremony to formalize Moscow's annexation of four Ukrainian regions. “Do we really want perversions that lead to degradation and extinction to be imposed in our schools from the primary grades?”
Authorities have rejected accusations of discrimination against LGBTQ+ people. Earlier this week, Russian media quoted Andrei Loginov, a deputy justice minister, as saying that “the rights of LGBT people in Russia are protected" legally. Loginov spoke in Geneva, while presenting a report on human rights in Russia to the U.N. Human Rights Council, and argued that “restraining public demonstration of non-traditional sexual relationships or preferences is not a form of censure for them.”
Putin, speaking at a culture-related event in St. Petersburg on Friday, called LGBTQ+ people “part of the society, too" and said they are entitled to winning various arts and culture awards. He did not comment on the Justice Ministry's lawsuit.
Hungary issues an anti-EU survey to citizens on migration, support for Ukraine and LGBTQ+ rights
JUSTIN SPIKE
November 17, 2023
BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Hungary's government on Friday released a set of questions for an informal survey it will send to voters on a number of divisive issues including migration, LGBTQ+ rights and support for Ukraine, including a proposal to block further European Union assistance to Kyiv unless the bloc releases frozen funds to Hungary.
The survey, which the government calls a “national consultation,” contains 11 questions and strikes a combative tone toward the EU, which it accuses of trying to force policies on Hungary.
One question asks whether Hungary should block an EU plan to provide a four-year, 50 billion euro (nearly $53 billion) aid package for Ukraine unless the bloc unfreezes billions in assistance to Hungary that it has held up over concerns that the government of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has failed to uphold rule-of-law and human rights standards.
“They are asking Hungary for additional support (for Ukraine) even as our country has not received the EU funds due to it,” says one segment of the survey.
“We should not pay more to support Ukraine until we have received the money we are owed,” one possible answer says.
Hungary's national consultation surveys, conducted numerous times by Orbán's right-wing populist government since it took power in 2010, have been widely criticized by pollsters and opposition parties as propaganda tools that are manipulative in their phrasing and highly suggestive of desired answers.
Orbán's government says the surveys strengthen its bargaining position on the European level by demonstrating a national consensus on political issues.
The surveys are sent by mail to every Hungarian of voting age, but bear no legally binding relevance. They generally receive responses from fewer than 20% of Hungarian adults, yet the responses reflect up to 99% agreement with the government's position.
One question released Friday says the EU “wants to create migrant ghettos in Hungary” and asks whether respondents think Hungary should "accept Brussels' migration plans,” or prevent the creation of migrant ghettos.
Another says the EU wants Hungary to repeal a contentious law that bans the availability of LGBTQ+ content to minors and warns of “aggressive LGBTQ propaganda” targeting children.
The survey includes other questions about Ukraine, including a proposal that the EU cease military aid to Kyiv and opposition to talks over Ukraine eventually becoming an EU member.
Hungary's government has refused to supply Ukraine with weapons since Russia launched its invasion in February 2022 and has opposed EU sanctions on Moscow for its aggression.
In the last national consultation, which concluded in January, the government said 97% of Hungarians opposed sanctions against Russia though fewer than 1.4 million people returned the survey in a country of 9.7 million.
The surveys can be returned until Jan. 10, 2024, but the government in the past has extended such deadlines to increase participation.
JUSTIN SPIKE
November 17, 2023
BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Hungary's government on Friday released a set of questions for an informal survey it will send to voters on a number of divisive issues including migration, LGBTQ+ rights and support for Ukraine, including a proposal to block further European Union assistance to Kyiv unless the bloc releases frozen funds to Hungary.
The survey, which the government calls a “national consultation,” contains 11 questions and strikes a combative tone toward the EU, which it accuses of trying to force policies on Hungary.
One question asks whether Hungary should block an EU plan to provide a four-year, 50 billion euro (nearly $53 billion) aid package for Ukraine unless the bloc unfreezes billions in assistance to Hungary that it has held up over concerns that the government of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has failed to uphold rule-of-law and human rights standards.
“They are asking Hungary for additional support (for Ukraine) even as our country has not received the EU funds due to it,” says one segment of the survey.
“We should not pay more to support Ukraine until we have received the money we are owed,” one possible answer says.
Hungary's national consultation surveys, conducted numerous times by Orbán's right-wing populist government since it took power in 2010, have been widely criticized by pollsters and opposition parties as propaganda tools that are manipulative in their phrasing and highly suggestive of desired answers.
Orbán's government says the surveys strengthen its bargaining position on the European level by demonstrating a national consensus on political issues.
The surveys are sent by mail to every Hungarian of voting age, but bear no legally binding relevance. They generally receive responses from fewer than 20% of Hungarian adults, yet the responses reflect up to 99% agreement with the government's position.
One question released Friday says the EU “wants to create migrant ghettos in Hungary” and asks whether respondents think Hungary should "accept Brussels' migration plans,” or prevent the creation of migrant ghettos.
Another says the EU wants Hungary to repeal a contentious law that bans the availability of LGBTQ+ content to minors and warns of “aggressive LGBTQ propaganda” targeting children.
The survey includes other questions about Ukraine, including a proposal that the EU cease military aid to Kyiv and opposition to talks over Ukraine eventually becoming an EU member.
Hungary's government has refused to supply Ukraine with weapons since Russia launched its invasion in February 2022 and has opposed EU sanctions on Moscow for its aggression.
In the last national consultation, which concluded in January, the government said 97% of Hungarians opposed sanctions against Russia though fewer than 1.4 million people returned the survey in a country of 9.7 million.
The surveys can be returned until Jan. 10, 2024, but the government in the past has extended such deadlines to increase participation.
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