The Foreign Ministry of Ukraine expects that the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's parliament, will take into account Ukraine's international obligations while considering at second reading a bill prohibiting the propagation of homosexuality.
“Certainly the people’s deputies of Ukraine are free to propose any
legal initiatives based on their understanding of public opinion.
However, the Foreign Ministry expects that Ukraine’s international
obligations in the spheres human rights protection and particularly the
protection of [sexual] minorities’ rights would be taken into account in
this bill during its further consideration,” director of the Foreign
Ministry’s information policy department Oleh Voloshyn said in an
interview with Interfax-Ukraine, while commenting on the passing of the
bill at first reading by the Verkhovna Rada.
As reported, on October 2 the Verkhovna Rada passed at first reading a
bill amending some legal documents regarding protection of children’s
right to safe information space. Some 289 of the 350 MPs registered in
the sitting hall supported the bill.
The authors of the draft law propose to introduce responsibility for
actions that propagate homosexual relations, abuse of freedom of speech
in the printed media, and the propagation of homosexuality on television
and radio.
In addition, the authors of the document propose to add to the
article of the Criminal Code of Ukraine on punishments for the import,
production or distribution of products propagating violence, cruelty,
racial, national or religious intolerance and discrimination a relevant
provision on responsibility for the propagation of homosexuality.
The draft law was developed by people’s deputies Yevhen Tsarkov
(Communist Party parliamentary faction), Kateryna Lukyanova (Our
Ukraine-People’s Self-Defense faction), Pavlo Unhurian (BYT-Batkivschyna
faction), Yulia Kovalevska (Regions Party faction), Taras Chornovil
(independent deputy), and Lilia Hryhorovych (Our Ukraine-People’s
Self-Defense faction).
