NEW YORK TIMES Merkel, Meeting Putin, Raises Treatment of Gays and Jehovah’s Witnesses

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Merkel, Meeting Putin, Raises Treatment of Gays and Jehovah’s Witnesses

By NEIL MacFARQUHAR and ALISON SMALEMAY 2, 2017

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President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia and Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany spoke at a news conference in Sochi, Russia, on Tuesday. CreditPool photo by Alexander Zemlianichenko

MOSCOW — Germany’s chancellor, Angela Merkel, took the opportunity of a rare visit to Russia to raise domestic human rights issues on Tuesday with President Vladimir V. Putin, a noted departure from their continuing differences over Ukraine and Syria.

Ms. Merkel said she had talked to Mr. Putin about her concerns on civil rights in Russia, including, among other issues, the persecution of gay men, a new ban on Jehovah’s Witnesses and arrests of anti-Kremlin protesters.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/02/world/europe/merkel-putin-russia.html

Also watch it here at 9:48 min : httyoutube.com/watch?v=QpwR44MRXDI … ps://youtu.be/QpwR44MRXDI

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http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/angela-merkel-vladimir-putin-russia-talks-chechnya-gay-people-germany-ukraine-sanctions-syria-assad-a7713511.html
 

 

 

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GERMAN CHANCELLOR CALLS PUTIN'S ATTENTION TO THE NEED TO PROTECT MINORITIES, PARTICULARLY JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES

Portal-Credo.Ru, 2 May 2017

 

On 2 May, German Chancellor Angela Merkel asked Russian President Vladimir Putin to exert influence on the situation with sexual minorities in Chechnya, to protect the rights of homosexuals, and to protect the activity of the organization of Jehovah's Witnesses. She reported this during a press conference about the results of her meeting with the Russian leader, TASS reports.

 

"We have received very negative reports about what is happening with homosexuals in Chechnya and I asked the president to exert his influence for preserving the rights of minorities," she said, adding that it is important also to protect the activity of the organization of Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia.

 

Separately Merkel noted the necessity of honoring the right to public meetings and free activity of nongovernmental organizations.

 

On 20 April the Russian Supreme Court issued a decision to find all organizations of Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia to be "extremist," and to prohibit their activity and to confiscate their property. During the judicial proceedings, which lasted 6 days, there was not introduced a single example of extremist activity other than instances of refusing blood transfusion, the right to which is provided by Russian law. (tr. by PDS, posted 2 May 2017)

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