Kazakhstan Politician Wants Blood Test for Gay 'Degenerates'

A politician from Kazakhstan claims that "blood tests for degeneratism" can weed out gays, and that homosexuality should be made illegal, reports the Independent on Monday, Sept. 15.

Dauren Babamuratov, the leader of the Kazakh nationalist "Future" or "Bolashak" movement, held a press conference on Sept. 11 to petition banning "gay propaganda" in the country. You can tell the gays by their "colored pants," he added.

"We have stooped so low that LGBTs no longer hide their orientation. One can see a lot of people in the city's malls and other public places -- these are young people in colored pants," said Babamuratov. "This means they no longer hide their (sexual) orientation. I think it is very easy to identify a gay person by his or her DNA. A blood test can show the presence of degeneratism in a person."

Speaking in front of a lewd sign that read "homosexuality is a threat to the nation," Babamuratov noted that there were 14 gay clubs and bars in the largest city, Almaty, the "gay capital of Asia," and was disgusted that the "open discussion of the issues related to LGBT community is treated by the society as a natural process."

But he wanted more, saying, "Unfortunately, suppressing activities of the LGBT community in Kazakhstan is extremely difficult, because there is no law in our country prohibiting this type of activity, that is, the promotion of homosexuality."

And local politicians including the Secretary of the People's Communist Party came out in support of Bolashak's calls for the illegalization of homosexuality.

Tengri News reported that social activists from Almaty petitioned to legally ban gay "propaganda," and to prohibit gays from holding public office and serving in the army. They are also reportedly working on a new version of the Marriage and Family Code, which already bans gays from adopting children.

The Secretary of the People's Communist Party Yelnur Beisenbayev said that gay people were not sick, they were criminals and deserved a much harsher treatment.

"Besides the legal ban of the propaganda we should also adopt an anti-sodomy law like the one we had during the Soviet time [revoked in 1998]. We need these laws, to makes these (gay) people ashamed of themselves in our society," he said.

And the head of the Youth Policies Department of the Akmaty Akimat (Municipal Authorities) Sanzhar Bokayev, declared that Kazakhstan's gay community was "supported and funded from abroad. This is a big problem that concerns our society."

But local activist Kazakh activist and journalist Zhanar Sekerbayeva spoke against the ban, saying that intolerance toward LGBTs was already a common feature in "post traumatic societies." She said that homosexuality wasn't a Western import, but was in every society. And she added that, with no gay marriage or even Pride parades, the legislation wasn't intended to eradicate gay "propaganda," but LGBTs in general.

"There is no gay 'propaganda' in Kazakhstan, but there is homophobia," said Sekerbayeva. "The question of gay marriage in Kazakhstan has never been on the agenda. No one has been promoting it. There have been no public speeches or gay pride parades. There is only homophobia and discrimination of women. Outlawing us would be a discrimination. I don't see the future of my country in discrimination of gay people."