Responding to news that Russian authorities have launched the first-ever criminal investigation targeting LGBTI persons under “anti-extremism” laws after raiding a drag show in Orenburg, Natalia Zviagina, Amnesty International’s Russia Director, said:
“What LGBTI persons and human rights activists have feared since the end of last year has finally come to pass –Russian law enforcement, emboldened by the shameful Supreme Court ruling that declared a non-existent ‘international LGBTI movement’ to be ‘extremist’, has now opened its first LGBTI-related ‘extremism’ case.
“It’s particularly reprehensible that members of a Russian nationalist group were allowed to assist the police in their raid of the drag show at Pose club in Orenburg, southwestern Russia, earlier this month. Such cooperation between law enforcement and nationalist activists fosters an environment of impunity for homophobic and transphobic attacks and instigates a climate of fear among LGBTI persons.
It’s particularly reprehensible that members of a Russian nationalist group were allowed to assist the police in their raid of the drag show at Pose club in Orenburg, southwestern Russia, earlier this month
Natalia Zviagina, Amnesty International’s Russia Director
“The international community must call on Russian authorities to review the homophobic Supreme Court ruling and immediately stop persecution of LGBTI persons. It is imperative to ensure that all human rights are enjoyed by everyone without exception.”
Background
During the 12 March raid on Pose club, police and members of a local nationalist group, who had reported on the club, forced patrons and guests to lie face down on the floor. Performing drag queens were kept half-naked as their outfits and wigs were confiscated. The nationalist activists filmed the raid and posted the video online the same day.
According to 18 March reports, the club is now accused of ‘organizing and participating in an extremist group’, with a maximum punishment of 10 years in prison. The number of people being investigated is unknown.
Police raids on LGBTI-friendly establishments, including bars, clubs and saunas, increased in Russia after the Supreme Court ruling on 30 November 2023.