Appeal against century-long ban on gay pride in Moscow is refused
Nikolay Alexeyev, founder of Moscow Gay Pride, has had his appeal against the century-long ban on the parade rejected by Moscow City Court.
Speaking to the Russian Legal Information Agency, RAPSI, the activist said that the Moscow gay parade’s organisers had let it be known to city authorities last August that pride parades would be held in 2012 and also for the next 100 years.
The activists used a loophole in the law that only determines the deadline for submitting rally applications (no later than 30-45 days before the event), but does not state how far in advance events can be submitted.
The favoured location for the rallies was Moscow’s Bolotnaya Square.
Mr Alexeyev said: “After an extended period, the city refused to issue permits for the rallies for this year and for all of the next 100 years. They cited possible riots, as well as public opinion which came out against it.”
The Moscow Tverskoy District Court ruled the city’s decision legal in June, and later the Moscow City Court upheld the decision.
According to RAPSI, the courts press service said: “The judge found no grounds for submitting the appeal to the Presidium for consideration.”
Mr Alexeyev told Gayrussia that he still fully intended to appeal to the European Court on Human Rights in Strasbourg over the issue.
Mr Alexeyev also said via Twitter yesterday that he had now paid the first fine for “disseminating homosexual propaganda.”
He was fined 5,000 rubles (£100) under the new local anti-gay law in St Petersburg after being detained for picketing outside the city’s legislature building in April this year in protest at their new anti-gay law.
St Petersburg is the fourth Russian city to adopt it.
Homosexuality has been legal in Russia for less than 20 years. In 2007, Former Moscow Mayor Yury Luzhkov described attempts to hold a gay pride parade in the capital as “satanic.”
