BISHKEK, Kyrgyz Republic — The United States is condemning plans in Kyrgyzstan to adopt an anti-gay propaganda law, a measure that is similar to anti-gay legislation passed in Russia in 2013.
Kyrgyzstan’s parliament has begun debating the bill that would introduce tougher punishment for “popularizing homosexual relations” and “propaganda of a homosexual way of life”.
Under the bill, offenders would face fines or prison terms of up to one year for “forming a positive attitude to untraditional sexual relations” among minors or in mass media.
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The U.S. Embassy in Kyrgyzstan denounced the bill, saying the measure “fundamentally threatens human rights.”
“No one should be silenced or imprisoned because of who they are or whom they love. Laws that discriminate against one group of people threaten the fundamental rights of all people,” the Embassy said, in a statement issued Friday.
The bill passed its first reading on October 9. It must be approved in three readings and then be signed by the president to become a law.
