Chechen President Describes Gay People As 'Devils,' Says They Should Be Sent to Canada
Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov compared homosexuals to devils. Speaking to HBO's "Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel," the hardline leader added that any gay men left in his country should be sent to Canada. His comments came after reports that homosexuals were being detained and tortured.
Kadyrov was being interviewed one-on-one about mixed martial arts in Chechnya when David Scott diverted the question to the alleged wave of attacks on homosexuals by his administration. "We don't have those kinds of people here," he said. "If there are, take them to Canada. Praise be to God!" he added.
The Putin ally initially laughed dismissively at the question and asked someone behind the camera what the point of the questions was. When Scott pressed on with the allegations, the president answered angrily that they want to get rid of the homosexuals to purify the blood of his people.
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Kadyrov also turned his ire on journalists critical of his administration and called them not people but devils and for sale. He also said the journalists' reports were made up for which they will have to answer to the "almighty." His administration received international condemnation for the so-called "Gay Purge."
Kadyrov began a clampdown on gay men in 2013 with arbitrary arrests. The purge peaked in April when more than 100 men were rounded up, jailed and tortured in "concentration camps" where four gays were murdered. Russian LGBT campaigners claimed to have rescued at least 40 people during the purge.
Russian President Vladimir Putin appointed Kadyrov leader of Chechnya in 2006 following years of violence and civil war. The Muslim-dominated republic has become increasingly socially conservative under his leadership. Because of the "Gay Purge," Chechen gay men don't publicly acknowledge their sexuality and often lead double lives to avoid persecution — a situation that makes them susceptible to violence.
