The Russians know how things should be done

[N.O.R.F]

Gay activists beaten and arrested in Russia

 

 

· Police watch as neo-Nazis attack protesters

· MEPs among 30 detained as aggressors go free

 

Luke Harding in Moscow

Monday May 28, 2007

The Guardian

 

A Russian ultra-nationalist about to punch veteran British gay rights campaigner Peter Tatchell during a denonstration in Moscow.

 

Riot police used violence to break up a gay rights demonstration in Moscow yesterday and arrested several European parliamentarians in what critics say is the latest violation of human rights in Russia.

 

A group of gay rights activists came under attack from neo-Nazi thugs when they tried to present a petition asking Moscow's mayor, Yuri Luzhkov, to lift a ban on a Gay Pride parade. He has previously dubbed gay rallies "satanic". Witnesses said riot police watched as far-right skinheads chanting "death to homosexuals" beat up several activists.

 

The police failed to arrest the skinheads but detained several of the Europeans - including the German MP Volker Beck, a member of the Green party, and the radical Italian MEP Marco Capatto. Riot police threw Mr Capatto into a police van. "Why don't you protect us?" he shouted.

 

"It was absolutely shocking," the gay rights campaigner Peter Tatchell told the Guardian yesterday. "The police stood there while people knocked me to the ground and kicked me. Four or five neo-Nazis attacked me. The police watched. At a certain point the police then arrested me and let my neo-Nazi attackers walk free."

 

Religious orthodox protesters and skinheads hurled eggs and stones - injuring Mr Tatchell in the eye. They also attacked Richard Fairbrass, the gay singer from the pop group Right Said Fred.

 

"When we were in the police van the police taunted us," Mr Tatchell said after his release. "They said, 'Are you a member of the sexual minority?' We said yes. They said, 'We are going to have some fun with you at the police station.' What happened here shows the flawed and failed nature of Russia's transition to democracy. There is no right to protest in Moscow."

 

The arrest of European parliamentarians is likely to further depress relations between the EU and Russia - which are at a lowpoint after an acrimonious summit this month in the Russian city of Samara. The chairwoman of Germany's Green party, Claudia Roth, yesterday called on the chancellor, Angela Merkel, to raise the issue of rights with President Vladimir Putin at next month's G8 summit.

 

As a member of the Council of Europe and signatory to the European convention on human rights, Russia is obliged to allow demonstrations. "It has been shown once again today that human rights are systematically abused in Putin's Russia," Ms Roth said.

 

The activists had tried to deliver a petition signed by 50 MEPs calling on Moscow's mayor to respect freedom of assembly, but 30 of them were arrested and they did not make it to his city hall office. Mr Beck was later released. Three Russian gay rights campaigners were kept in custody and charged with disobeying police.

 

Neo-Nazi thugs and an orthodox priest attacked the activists when they were freed several hours after their arrest, witnesses said. "This is terrible but I am not scared," a Russian named Alexey said, blood streaming from his face. "This is a pretty scary place, a pretty scary country if you are gay. But we won't give up until they allow us our rights."

 

Russia decriminalised homosexuality in 1993, but the gay community is still widely reviled. Last year Mr Luzhkov refused to allow a Gay Pride rally to take place.

 

http://www.guardian.co.uk/russia/article/0,,2089413,00.html

 

Gotta love them skin heads

[Caano Geel]

^ yeah, i'm sure they would show you their love too

[Johnny B]

^Not that i intend to challenge your hateful stance towards Homosexuals/bisexuals and Lesbians as i'm a hetrosexual myself, but i just can't srand your romance with the skin-heads.

 

Russia is a new democracy, they've a long way to go, and at the end, they'll ve no choice but to protect the rights of al their citizens from gays to skin-heads inclusive.

 

From personal experience i can tell you that you'd dislike them skin-heads had you known what they stand for , that is.

 

You may rejoice what they do to those of the different sexuality, but in thier scale,you may even grade lower , if not as a black, surely as a " svartkalle" etc.etc..

 

Your humble sentiment of gay hatred may glitter your smile, but it should not blind you for taking a Skin-head or a new-nazisit what he really is, sadly that doesen't seem to be the case.

[Cara.]

I'm sure someone will say this will just draw the usual suspects

 

"This is terrible but I am not scared," a Russian named Alexey said, blood streaming from his face. "This is a pretty scary place, a pretty scary country if you are gay. But we won't give up until they allow us our rights."

I find that quite heroic and admirable.

 

But really Northerner, you must have a short attention span. Remember Mukhtar Osman?

[Kashafa]

^^ I hate to drag in politics, but um, you find homosexual rallies in Russia 'quite heroic and admirable' ? But the Muqaawama fighters are a buncha rag-tag militas who cowardly hide behind civillians ? Whose cause is lost and unworthy ?

 

^ What's wrong with that picture, Cara ? I mean, you know the world's coming to an end when Sodomites are lauded as heroes and patriot freedom fighters denigrated as foolish cowardly doqons.

 

Yeah, I know you may not have used those exact words, but if I'm not mistaken, thats the general sentiment I gather from your posts. Just struck me as very dense. Support the fags, but them patriotic resistance fighters saving my country from Xabashi occupation, Nah, they're too bloody for my tastes.

 

Also, would you still use the phrase 'heroic and admirable' if this was a rally in support of incest ? You know, two consenting adult blood relatives who want all the rights, including marriage, that other non-incesters have.

 

Pedophiles ? Animal um 'friends' ? Once morality is sacrificed at the altar of 'rights', there are no more limits. Everything can and will be rationalised.

[Centurion]

You have the wrong end of the stick Kashafa, one does not need to approve of someone's cause to be able to call them 'quite heroic and admirable' .

 

Nor are all those who [you think] are fighting for a cause you believe in, worthy of being called heroic and admirable.

[Castro]

^^^^ Are you sure about that Centurion?

 

This topic has all the ingredients (sex, war, morality, gay rights, resistance, occupation, and religion) to become a heated discussion.

 

Pass the popcorn.

[Cara.]

Kashafa, Alexey there isn't planting bombs in markets, lobbing grenades at his opponents or calling for the assassinations of those right-wingers. Believe me, as soon as he starts any of that business "foolish cowardly doqon" will be the mildest epithet I would use to describe him. As Centurion said, you've lost all sense of perspective if you can't admire someone's bravery, even if you disagree with their stance. Likewise, I was in admiration of the Islamists' Pan-Somali convictions right up until they left the teenagers to fight the Xabashis while they turned tail and ran. I believe they claimed to be retreating to protect civilian lives... civilian lives they no longer seem to care about to quite the same degree.

 

If today you decided to back up house and head for Somalia to fight them occupiers yourself I would think you were brave and honorable and lived by your word. But if you sit in your safe, air-conditioned apartment and call for death and destruction without sense or aim then I think Alexey is a better man than you are. Being a man isn't about who you do, it's what you do

[Castro]

^^^ Why can't someone cheer for the resistance without being called a coward and a lazy couch potato?

[Zafir]

^Why do the cowards and lazy couch potato’s someone’s always cheer for the resistance? An equally important question.

[Emperor]

Gays aa? Acuudu Bilaah... hit them hard the stinking unnatural beasts, they are just disease to society and have no use to live, the world is full of hypocracy when they fight and try eliminate every killer disease and let the worst disease of all time go by, homesexuality... Uuf...

 

It reminds me of the story about djiboutian dude who when heard of two similir males looking on to something from one other killed and ended his life on spot, thought life ain't worth anything if that can happened, true true...

[Caano Geel]

Originally posted by Emperor:

It reminds me of the story about djiboutian dude who when heard of two similir males looking on to something from one other killed and ended his life on spot, thought life ain't worth anything if that can happened, true true...

Dont make us ask you the obvious, just give us a time, and an address to send our condolence and your martyrdom cards. Go brother emp.

[Legend of Zu]

^^^^ LoooL..ready with the condolence cards huh?

 

Emperor..Lets see your logic....suicide vs homosexuality...which one do you think is worse in Islam?

 

As for the Neo Nazi...I am with JB on this

 

Cheers

[Emperor]

^Hmmm.. that's hard question and there is never direct answer, so don't expect any...

 

CG sxb you can forward it to my especial mail box through your local Mosque, now that is doable go and make that "Allaha aqbalo du'a"

[Legend of Zu]

^^^ Noo Way? do you wanna ask the local Imam?

 

Cheers