Photo:
RIA Novosti
The President of Russia Vladimir Putin promised to discuss with interior Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev and Prosecutor General Yuri Chaika information about violations of gay rights in Chechnya. This was reported on the official Kremlin website.
The President raised the issue at a meeting with the authorised human rights Tatyana Moskalkova. The Ombudsman told him that now deals with the problem of violations of the rights of homosexuals. “I sent several petitions to the Prosecutor’s office, investigative bodies. And I would ask You to instruct, perhaps to establish an interdepartmental working group which could, in the Central part, not on the territory of Chechnya, to accept complaints from citizens, if any,” said she.
Moskalkova noted that the victims “are not willing to give his name.” She recalled that the law on the protection of witnesses and victims “allows to use the powerful levers of state protection and to maintain confidentiality”.
“I would just like to say that, of course, I will discuss it with the attorney General and Minister of internal Affairs, so that they supported you on the topic that you raised now, according to the known information or rumors, we can say about what is happening in the North Caucasus with people of different sexual orientation. It goes without saying. I hope our colleagues will respond and will support You”, – Putin said.
Informed to “Novaya Gazeta” reported that in Chechnya there are “secret prisons” for gays. According to the newspaper, one such institution is a complex of buildings, where in the 2000-ies was the military commandant’s office.
According to “Novaya Gazeta”, the first wave of mass arrests of gay men in Chechnya began in late February, when the region detained the person in the phone were pictures and videos of explicit content and dozens of contacts with local homosexuals.
The second wave came at the end of March, according to the newspaper, was connected with the plans of LGBT activists to hold a protest. The publication claims that the “secret prisons” detainees were beaten with pipes and sticks, tortured with electric shocks, demanding “surrender” to other gay men and at best released for a huge ransom.
Press Secretary of the head of Chechnya, Alvi Karimov called the publication “Novaya Gazeta” “absolute lie”. He stressed that “it is impossible to detain and harass someone simply not in the Republic.” Press Secretary of the Russian President Dmitry Peskov said that “the bodies of internal Affairs will check” this information. The second of may arrived in Sochi to meet with Putin, German Chancellor Angela Merkel asked the Russian President to protect gays in Chechnya.