2mo ago

Russia: Man accused of organizing LGBTQ+ tours dies in jail

www.dw.com Russia: Man accused of organizing LGBTQ+ tours dies in jail – DW – 12/29/2024

Andrei Kotov, the director of the travel agency Men Travel, died while in pre-trial detention in Moscow. Russia officially views the "LGBT movement" as an illegal extremist group.

Summary

Andrei Kotov, a Russian travel agency director accused of organizing LGBTQ+ tours, died in pre-trial detention in Moscow.

Authorities claim his death was a suicide, but rights groups highlight previous reports of beatings and abuse during his arrest.

Kotov was charged with “extremist activities” after Russia banned the LGBTQ+ movement as extremist in 2023, intensifying its crackdown on LGBTQ+ rights.

He denied organizing specific LGBTQ+ events, calling them ordinary tours.

His death has raised concerns about the treatment of detainees and the broader suppression of dissent in Russia.

35 comments

russia is a terror state
- Every state is a terror state
  
  No. This is a BS "both sides" type argument.
  There are other terror states. Iran, China, Russia, Afghanistan, and many more, but there are many countries that focus on freedom and democratic values. Some might be slipping into tyrannical government's slowly (looking at you US of A), but even those are nowhere near the levels Russia is.
  
  Sure, but some are clearly worse. Like Russia
  
  You don't think Russia is tho
  
  hell yeah anarchism time

Horrible death to die in the hands of some vile thugs.
- i have that thought every single time i see someone get arrested by the police in the united states; i hope to myself that they don't experience the same fate that most brown people like me experience at the hands of those thugs.
  
  I have had interactions with police in both russia and US (I am not white). It is not even close.
  Police in the US clearly do a lot of very bad, brutal things, but they still have a measure of self-control.
  Russian police are literally more like open criminals without any sort of accountability (outside of targetting say the son of a well connected government thug or oligarch by mistake). Russian police are completely unhinged.

Russia is a shithole state
- But Putin is sexy and I hate the gays!
  
  Don't forget your "/s", please.
  You'd be surprised how necessary it is.

35 comments