Mayor of London Ken Livingstone has condemned the Mayor of Moscow Yury Luzhkov for saying he will never allow a Gay Pride parade to take place in Moscow.
In a strongly worded statement issued today Mayor Livingstone said “I strongly oppose Moscow banning gay rights marches in the city. It is the right of gays and lesbians to demonstrate peacefully and this should be upheld by Moscow.”
“Last May, I condemned the decision by Moscow to ban the city’s first gay pride event, which led to scenes of fascists parading in Moscow and assaulting gay and lesbian people. I am taking exactly the same position this year.”
“London has set a clear line against hate crime and welcomes lesbians and gay men and values the important contribution they make to our city. Moscow should show respect to all its citizens and allow gay and lesbian citizens to stage what is clearly a purely peaceful event.”
