The Russian authorities have filed the first case under the new "LGBT propaganda" law against the "Popcorn Books" publishing house, Alexander Khinshtein, the chairman of the Russian lower house's information policy committee, said on Tuesday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 10th January, 2023) The Russian authorities have filed the first case under the new "LGBT propaganda" law against the "Popcorn Books" publishing house, Alexander Khinshtein, the chairman of the Russian lower house's information policy committee, said on Tuesday.
"The first case initiated under the new LGBT propaganda article has been reported. It was opened following my requests regarding the infamous publishing house Popcorn Books," Khinshtein said on Telegram.
The Russian lawmaker explained that, despite the introduction of the law banning "propaganda of non-traditional relationships," the publishing house had kept "selling such books," and had started to publish book covers with quotes from the Russian Constitution's Article 29 that protects freedom of speech.
In this regard, the Russian authorities have initiated proceedings under Article 6.21 of the Code on Administrative Offenses amended by the recent law banning "propaganda" of LGBTQ+, pedophilia and gender reassignment. In addition, the case was also filed under charges of "disorderly conduct," Khinshtein said, citing the Interior Ministry's response to his requests. The case was opened on December 28.
On December 5, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a package of laws banning "propaganda" of LGBTQ+, pedophilia and gender reassignment. Individuals and legal entities violating the law can be fined up to 10 million rubles (around $144,000).
