Ukraine Approves "Gay Propaganda" Ban

Ukraine's Parliament has voted overwhelmingly to approve a ban on "gay propaganda" much like the ones recently created in parts of Russia. Gay Star News reports:

Within the last hour 289 deputies voted for bill 8711, nobody voted against and just one abstained. Another 60 deputies were absent from the chamber. The vote today (2 October) had only been announced yesterday, giving LGBT rights campaigners little time to organize against it. Despite that 20 community activists and campaigners representing various organizations and initiatives gathered to protest against the proposed law. They urged members of parliaments to reject it, saying it is against human rights. Police attended to protect the protestors. Olena Shevchenko, of Insight organization, is at the forefront of the campaign to stop the homophobic law. She told Gay Star News: "It is quite serious. It is not just about LGBT rights. It can be about anything, because it is just censorship. It is not clear what is counted as 'propaganda' under the proposed law. It could be an interview in the media or a protest. Or you could just be out on the street with your partner and someone could complain to say that is propaganda."