Moscow police launch raids on gay clubs
On Thursday, the Supreme Court in Russia classifies the LGBTQ+ movement as "extremist" and bans it. The specific consequences are initially unclear. The Moscow police have now raided several clubs and bars that are popular in the scene. Arrests are also said to have been made.
According to media reports, the Russian police have raided several gay bars and nightclubs in Moscow. On Saturday night, the uniformed officers forced their way into the large Moscow clubs under the pretext of searching for drugs, as reported by the media and social networks. In addition, a sauna accessible only to men was searched, various Russian media reported. The apparently coordinated raids took place shortly after the international LGBT movement was banned by the Russian judiciary.
Videos showed police officers in front of a nightclub popular with homosexuals, where a huge party was taking place. "The music stopped in the middle of the party," an eyewitness told Ostoroshno Novosti. The police then took photos of the guests' identity papers. Late on Friday evening, one of the oldest gay clubs in St. Petersburg announced that it was closing. To justify the decision, the "main club" referred to a decision made by the Supreme Court the previous day.
On Thursday, the Russian Supreme Court had issued a ban against the "international LGBT movement" for "extremism" and prohibited its activities on Russian territory. The ruling came into force with immediate effect. However, the court did not initially specify whether its ruling applied to specific individuals or organizations in Russia. As a result, its exact impact remained unclear for the time being. In Russia, "extremism" is punishable by long prison sentences.
Repression on the rise under Putin
Lesbians, gays, trans and bisexuals (LGBT) have been subjected to increasing political persecution in the country for years. On Friday, a court in St. Petersburg sentenced a music television station to pay 500,000 roubles (5088 euros) for showing a video of Russian pop star Sergei Lazarev with a scene full of tenderness between two women. The video for the song "Tak krassivo" (in German: So beautiful) violated the ban on "homo-propaganda", which criminalizes public depictions of same-sex love.
Under Russian President Vladimir Putin, who sees himself as a fighter against Western liberalism, repression against sexual minorities and people of different gender identities has increased massively in recent years. Many of those affected have left Russia out of fear for their lives. Commentators speak of an "Iranization" or "Nazification" of the country. Human rights activists complain that violence against homosexuals or even calls for murder have repeatedly gone unpunished for the perpetrators.
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In response to the Supreme Court's classification of the LGBTQ+ movement as "extremist," Russian police have escalated their actions against the community. On Sunday night, police raided a popular gay sauna in Moscow, continuing their crackdown on LGBTIQ venues. This latest incident follows the Supreme Court's immediate ban on the "international LGBT movement" for "extremism," which has sparked concerns among human rights activists about rising police violence against sexual minorities in Russia.
Source: www.ntv.de
