Vladimir Putin is trying to literally erase the existence of same-sex marriage from Russian law
(Marcos del Mazo/LightRocket via Getty)
Russian president Vladimir Putin has proposed amendments to the country’s constitution, including defining marriage as exclusively between a man and a woman.
According to the Russian news agency RIA, the State Duma, the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia, received 24 pages of proposed amendments on Monday, March 2.
Other amendments include making Russian the country’s official language, and enshrining “ideals and faith in God” in the constitution.
Deputy chairman of the lower house Pyotr Tolstoy said: “For me, the most important thing is the proposal to fix the concept of marriage as a union of a man and a woman in the basic law.”
Critics have said that altering the constitution may be Putin’s attempt to hold on to power after 2024, when he is due to leave the Kremlin, according to the New York Times.
A second reading of the amendments will take place in the State Duma on March 10, and a third on March 11.
On April 22 there will be a nationwide vote, with hopes to implement the changes by April 25.
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin. (Mikhail MetzelTASS via Getty)
Vladimir Putin: ‘No same-sex parents as long as I’m president.’
Last month, the Russian president went on an anti-LGBT+ rant, vowing that there would be no same-sex marriage or adoption as long as he is in the Kremlin.
He said: “As far as ‘parent number one’ and ‘parent number two’ goes, I’ve already spoken publicly about this and I’ll repeat it again: As long as I’m president this will not happen.
“There will be dad and mum.”
Putin and his government banned “gay propaganda” in 2013, adding to the discrimination, persecution and violence that queer people face in the country.
Researchers found that hate crimes against the LGBT community have doubled since the introduction of the “gay propaganda” law.
In 2017, Putin claimed that it is his “duty” to stop gay people getting married so that people have more babies.
