Gay rights campaigner Peter Tatchell says he may be prevented from leaving Russia just days after he was detained during a one-man protest in Moscow.
Mr Tatchell was seeking to draw attention to what he said were appalling human rights abuses committed against gay men in Chechnya, a deeply conservative Muslim region of the country.
He said he feared for his life when he was arrested: “I count myself lucky because if I’d been a Russian citizen and done that I would have been treated quite roughly by the police,” he told SBS News.
“I almost certainly would have ended up with a very large fine and probably 15 or more days in prison.”
Mr Tatchell accused President Vladimir Putin of failing to speak out about the persecution of LGBTI people in Chechnya.
Human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell shouts into a megaphone during an LGBT rights protest. Source: Getty
He said now - while Russia is hosting the single biggest global sporting event - was the time to do it: “I thought it was really important that President Putin should not have an unchallenged PR coup with the World Cup.”
Mr Tatchell is scheduled to face court on June 26 to answer charges of holding an illegal protest. But the activist said he has no intention of attending the hearing and plans to leave Russia before the court date.
“I am fearful that I might be stopped, but it’s a risk I’ll have to take,” he said.
President Putin spoke of love and friendship when opening the World Cup in Moscow. But his efforts at addressing homophobia and discrimination in this conservative and religious country are anything but.
Same-sex relationships are not illegal in Russia, however, members of the LGBTI community have long faced persecution.
In 2013, the Russian Duma passed an anti-gay law legalising fines for what it labelled propaganda about non-traditional sexual relationships among minors.
And last week, Russian Cossacks said they would report to police any gay couples seen kissing in public.
There are fears attitudes towards LGBTI people in Russia could also feed homophobia in neighbouring countries
“Kazakhstan, Armenia, Azerbaijan - previous Soviet Union - if it’s ok in Russia, it’s also ok for us, they might say,” said Zoya Matisova from the Russian LGBT Network NGO.
But with the world’s eyes on Russia, UK Ambassador to Russia Laurie Bristow said safety fears for gay fans have not gone unnoticed.
“Russia is trying to present a welcoming face to the world and we hope that all those things will help to slightly move public opinion here in Russia to be more open, more accepting and more tolerant frankly,” he said.
