ASTANA (Reuters) -Kazakhstan moved a step closer on Wednesday to banning the spreading of what it calls LGBT “propaganda” online or in the media, with repeat offenders facing up to 10 days in prison.
A working group of members of parliament approved amendments introducing the penalties for what it views as propaganda for non-traditional relationships and paedophilia, echoing similar laws passed in Russia and other former-Soviet countries.
The move means the amendments will likely pass when brought to a full vote in parliament, which is dominated by legislators loyal to the Kazakh authorities.
Tatiana Chernobyl, an independent Kazakhstani human rights consultant, told Reuters that the amendments “legitimise open discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity”.
The amendments must be signed into law by President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, who has in recent months expressed support for upholding “traditional values”.
A majority Muslim but largely secular country, Kazakhstan legalised homosexuality in the 1990s, though attitudes remain deeply conservative.
Speaking in support of the ban at the working group, lawmaker Nurlan Auyesbaev said that propaganda in favour of LGBT relationships represented “an open threat not only to society, but also to the country”.
Several former communist countries including Russia, Georgia, and Hungary have passed laws prohibiting advocacy of LGBT relationships in recent years.
(Reporting by Tamara Vaal in Astana; Additional reporting by Mariya Gordeyeva in Almaty; Writing by Felix Light; Editing by Alison Williams)
