Poll: Almost a quarter of Russians want ‘compulsory treatment’ for gays and 5% think gay people should be ‘liquidated’

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A new survey has revealed that an overwhelming majority of Russians oppose same-sex marriage, gay adoption rights and pride parades, with a high percentage claiming to have no gay relatives or friends and a proportionately high percentage saying gay people should be “liquidated”.

The survey conducted by the Levada Center showed that 23% of respondents felt that gay people should be left alone, a decline of 7% from eight years ago while 27% thought gay people needed psychological treatment, an increase of 5% from eight years ago.

Another 16% of respondents thought that gay people should be isolated from society, 22% thought there should be compulsory treatment for them and 5% thought that homosexuals should be ‘liquidated.’

The results released on Tuesday revealed that 85% of Russians opposed same-sex marriage, 80% felt same-sex couples should not be granted adoption rights and 87% said they did not want gay pride parades to take place in Russian cities, reports the Moscow Times.

According to the survey fewer people are tolerant of homosexuality compared to a similar survey conducted eight years ago.

When asked the question, “What is your personal feeling toward gay and lesbians?” 50% said they felt irritated and disgusted, while 18% said they felt a sense of alertness and only 4% said that homosexuals evoked a positive response in them.

Overall, 89% of the people who responded said they had no homosexual friends or relatives.

The survey was conducted in February with 1,600 residents in over 130 cities across Russia. Levada Center surveys have a margin of error of 3.4%.

In February, Pink News examined why Russia is defying the global trend towards LGBT equality.

 

 

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