Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed new legislation, marking the final step in outlawing gender-affirming procedures, a crippling blow to Russia’s already embattled LGBTQ+ community.
The bill, approved unanimously by both houses of parliament, bans any “medical interventions aimed at changing the sex of a person”, as well as changing one’s gender in official documents and public records. The only exception will be medical intervention to treat congenital anomalies.
It also annuls marriages where one person has “changed gender” and bars transgender people from becoming foster or adoptive parents.
The ban is said to stem from the Kremlin’s crusade to protect what it views as the country’s “traditional values”. Politicians say the legislation is to safeguard Russia against “Western anti-family ideology”, with some describing gender transitioning as “pure satanism”.
