NOVOSIBIRSK, RUSSIA Radical fanatic who considers himself a “gay hunter” attacked another man without any reason right in the center of Novosibirsk. He picked him as a victim solely based on his appearance and rained punches on him. He recorded the assault on video and proudly shared it on social media. He even said he would have beaten him up even more if they hadn’t been in the city center.


Unfortunately, Russian laws indirectly encourage such behavior. There is a complete ban on public expressions of homosexuality or LGBTQ+ groups. Putin’s regime claims that homosexuality is a Western corruption and portrays homosexuals as a moral evil. Gay hunters like the guy in the video are often not even prosecuted.

In the Chechen Republic, a Muslim region of Russia, there have been reports of kidnappings, torture, and extrajudicial executions of homosexuals. Moscow is aware of this, but does virtually nothing.

LGBTQ+ people in Russia live in an environment of fear, discrimination, and legal insecurity. The situation has worsened in recent years – not only because of new laws, but also due to a general atmosphere of hatred promoted from above.