Several Russian regions have outraged rights campaigners by approving local laws banning 'gay propaganda' among minors, in legislation which is now being discussed at the federal parliament. Russia decriminalised homosexuality in 1993 and officially removed it from the list of psychiatric disorders in 1999.īut homophobia remains widespread and socially acceptable, and almost no public figures have come out as gay. The Investigative Committee's tersely-worded statement said investigators had opened a murder probe, without commenting on possible motives for the killing. Regional investigator Andrei Gapchenko told Echo of Moscow radio on Saturday that two men started beating the victim after he told them he was gay. The victim was said to have been drinking with the two men, apparently while celebrating Victory Day which Russia marks on May 9. One of the suspects has a criminal history, investigators said. Two men aged 22 and 27 have been detained in connection with the attack, the Moscow-based Investigative Committee said in a statement on Saturday. She confirmed the attack was believed to have been a hate crime, in a rare admission from Russian law enforcement agencies on the sensitive issue of homophobia in the country.
