A 49-year-old resident of the Primorsky region located in the Russian Far East will soon face court prosecution for “promoting LGBT and sex change” views following a walk he took while dressed in a dress and a wig, which caused complaints from the locals, Mediazona reports, citing a statement by the regional authorities.
The statement reads that the man’s appearance “provoked complaints from fellow villagers and public criticism”. The man was detained and taken to a police station, he pleaded guilty and expressed remorse for what he’d done, the authorities noted. The case is expected to be referred to court soon.
On Friday, reports emerged that Russia’s media watchdog launched a complaint collection page on its website to flag LGBT-related content. The agency vowed to block the websites that fail to remove these materials in 24 hours following the notice.
The “LGBT propaganda” ban entered into force in Russia on 5 December 2022. It is applied both to minors and adults. The law prohibits “propaganda” of “non-traditional relations”, pedophilia, and sex change online, in the media, books, cinema, and ads. In the first month since the bill was enacted, the media watchdog banned more than 300 websites for “promoting LGBT” views.