UN calls for investigation to be opened into treatment of homosexuals in Chechnya
The United Nations has requested a full investigation surrounding the LGBT community in Chechnya, as stated by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid al-Hussein, at a briefing in Geneva. According to him, the UN continues to monitor this situation.
In April, Novaya Gazeta published material detailing a campaign in Chechnya, during which hundreds of homosexual men were abducted. Journalists claimed that the victims were tortured and forced to disclose information about other gays whom they knew. Later, this information was confirmed by representatives of the Russian LGBT network.
The news agency filed a complaint in court due to the inaction of the head of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation, Alexander Bastrykin. The journalists claimed that the head of the department failed to react to the reports about crimes in Chechnya against men with nontraditional sexual orientations.