By Country / Russia
Siberian City Bans Concert By Gay Singer
November 16, 2005
16 November 2005 -- The public movement, In Defense of Russian Orthodox Morals, has persuaded Tyumen city authorities to ban a concert by the openly gay singer Boris Moiseev.
The concert, which was scheduled for 19 November, would, according to the organization, have a "damaging influence on [the city's] youth," reported on "Izvestiya" on 15 November.
According to the daily, another group, the Russian Orthodox Brotherhood, is currently waging a public campaign in Yekaterinburg to convince residents not to attend Moiseev's 21 November concert there.
Moiseev condemned the move, saying, "In our country, no one takes into consideration the interests of consumers. The authorities think for some reason not about the rights of the people who bought tickets and paid their money but about the anarchists who think they have the right to decide what is good and what is bad."
Last month, a deputy mayor in Perm established a policy that artists who openly declare themselves to be gay will have to pay a higher fee to rent out the city's main concert venue.