Moscow security official: Attempts to hold gay pride march will be ‘thwarted’
The Mayor’s office in Moscow has refused an application to hold a gay pride even in the city later this month, security officials said because of a “negative attitude” to the application, and that attempts to hold an unofficial march will be “thwarted”.
LGBT activists in Russia, earlier this week filed a request to hold pride on 25 May in the Russian capital, but the application was declined.
Top security official, Alexei Mayorov, said on Wednesday: “We have sent a notification to the organizers that we have not given a go-ahead to the event.”
An application to picket in Moscow’s Sokolniki Park was also declined.
He went on to cite a “negative attitude” towards the idea of a gay pride march as the reason for its application being turned down.
Mr Mayorov went on to warn against possible attempts to hold the event anyway, saying: “If the organizers still try to hold the event, a certain reaction will follow and the action will be thwarted.”
In August last year, Nikolay Alexeyev, founder of Moscow Gay Pride, had an appeal against the century-long ban on the parade rejected by Moscow City Court.
A law in the city of St Petersburg law equates homosexuality with paedophilia and was passed by the city on February 29 of last year – despite more than 270,000 people signing an online petition against the measure.
Last year, St Petersburg authorities permitted a rally against homophobia, but its participants were attacked by masked thugs, none of whom were arrested.
