Aggressive actions against Russian LGBT-community is the core activity of entities with religious-orthodox ideology.
Among this kind of movements we can note the following ones:
- “NKD” (National-conservative movement)
- The “Sorok Sorokov” movement
- Russian liberation movement “SERB” (previously “South East Radical Block”)
Hate speech cases against LGBT-community and the part played by radical organizations can be clearly shown by an example of the “National-Consevative Movement” (“NKD”), founded by Mikhail Ochkin and Valentina Bobrova (according to social networks these persons are spouses).
Also below you can see the facts of cooperation between “NKD” and pro-Kremlin movement “SERB” aimed to illegal detention of participants of LGBT International Film Festival “Side by Side”. The agents of radical movements have been disrupting the event and made provocative and abusive remarks towards the guests of “Side by Side” during the festival.
NKD group in VKontakte:
https://vk.com/rus_mir_org
VKontakte personal web page of Valentina Bobrova:
https://vk.com/valentinabobrova
Vkontakte web page of Mikhail Ohkin:
https://vk.com/m.ochkin
The publication of text by Anton Raevskiy, a neo-nazi radical who took part in pro-Russian takeover attempt in Odessa and in military operations in the East Ukraine.
Sergei Moiseev, “SERB” (represents movement’s relations with “NKD”):
Aleksander Petrunko, “SERB” (represents movement’s relations with “NKD”):
A homophobic project “Pidorasam.net” https://vk.com/pidorasam_net
made up by Mikhail Ochkin and Valentina Bobrova, the leaders of “NKD”.
The project was created with the aim to radically counter the LGBT-community and is directly related to the “National-Conservative Movement”.
The “Pidorasam.net” project openly promotes hatred towards LGBT-community as a social group and violates the freedom of assembly enshrined in Article 31 of the Constitution of Russia and also encourages violent actions against LGBT people (articles 111 and 118 of the Criminal Code of Russia and article 20.3.1 of the Administrative Code).
Video-archive of the project https://vk.com/videos-177576846
“SERB” and “NKD” disrupt and forcefully confine the guests of LGBT film festival in Moscow, thus violating the citizens’ rights for freedom of movement and freedom of assembly.
The “SERB” and “NKD” provocateurs publicly humiliating the participants of the festival.
The “Sorok Sorokov” movement https://vk.com/sorok_sorokov
The video contains the pro-LGBT picket disperse in Voronezh in August 2019. It shows violence against the people who planned to hold an anti-homophobic picket.
The people who planned the picketing were abused and attacked by “Sorok Sorokov” and loyal football fans.
Web pages of “Sorok Sorokov” movement
Web-site: https://soroksorokov.ru/
VKontakte web-page: https://vk.com/sorok_sorokov
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sorok_sorokov/
Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/D.SorokSorokov/
Telegram: t.me/sorok40russia
According to current information the “Sorok Sorokov” socio-political movement has been repeatedly used to disperse the LGBT related activities and is being financed from the funds related to Russian Orthodox Church (ROC).
The picture proving the connection between these radical movements.
Valentina Bobrova and a member of “Orthodox Banner-Bearers” (radical orthodox religious movement).
Open sources reveal the facts of cooperation between ROC Moscow Patriarchate and radical orthodox movements. One of such facts is awarding of an order of the leader of «Orthodox Banner-Bearers» Leonid Simonovich-Nikshech by Patriarch Alexy II.
Moreover, according to open sources, one of the sponsors of «Orthodox Banner-Bearers» is Sergei Sotnikov, a Russian oligarch.
Sergei Sotnikov in Twitter: https://twitter.com/s_sotnikov?s=09
Leaders of «National-Conservative movement» Mikhail Ochkin and his wife Valentina Bobrova with Vsevolod Chaplin, one of the ideologists of war in the East Ukraine.
Picket for banning homosexual relations in Russia. Moscow 2019.
Members of “National-Conservative movement” Mikhain Ochkin and Valentina Bobrova on homophobic picket. Moscow, 2019.
Shota Apkhaidze (a well known pro-Putin propagandist in Georgia, adversary of Mikhail Saakashvili politics, Director of Caucasus Islam researches Center), Valentina Bobrova and Mikhail Ochkin (National-Conservative movement).
Shota Apkhaidze interviewed by News Front propaganda TV-channel.
The goal of the channel: hybrid aggression against the Ukraine, information support of Lugansk and Donetsk terrorist groups.
Shota Apkhaidze interviewed by «Tsargrad» propaganda channel.
The head and sponsor of “Tsargrad” is oligarch Konstantin Malofeev.
Konstantin Malofeev (born on July 3, 1974, Pushchino, Moscow oblast’) – Russian manager and entrepreneur, head of the Board of Directors of “Tsargrad” group, deputy head of All-World Russian Peoples Gathering, founder of “Tsargrad” TV channel, founder of St. Basil the Great Charity foundation, head of the board of trustees of “St. Basil high school”, founded by him in 2007, a member of Patriarch commission for maternity protection, a member of the board of trustees of nonprofit partnership “Internet safety league”, Head of the “Society for Russian Historical Education “The Double-headed Eagle””.
The activities of radical orthodox movements are generously sponsored by Russian Orthodox Church non-commercial foundation, which provides the members of radical groups with stable financial support for their provocative actions.
Relations with ROC MP allow them to stay almost invincible despite their direct violation of Russian and international laws.
LGBT-people are not the only target for the radical groups; minor religious communities like Jehovah’s Witnesses and the Church of Scientology are among their targets as well. The “SERB” radical group has also arranged provocations and attacks against Russian opposition activists and artists, while successfully avoiding punishment every time.
All the given facts are evidence of close relations of these groups to the heads of ROC MP and of them having patrons among Russian officials and law enforcement bodies.
The regular illegal activities of members of the aforementioned organizations are neglected both by politics and MIA officers. The unconcealed illegal actions of the groups, listed in our report, clearly show that the Russian Federation directly violates its own international human rights obligations.