A Russian advocacy group is attempting to nominate the ‘Czar of homophobia’ Vladimir Putin for the Nobel Peace Prize. The International Academy of Spiritual Unity and Cooperation of Peoples of the World announced its bid at a press conference in Moscow, saying he deserves the award more than 2009 winner Barack Obama. “Barack Obama is the man who has initiated and approved the United States’ aggressive actions in Iraq and Afghanistan. Now he is preparing for an invasion into Syria. He bears this title nevertheless,” it said, claiming Putin has tried to stop the bloodshed. The Washington Times, however, points out Putin “does have a footprint in Syria”, saying “He’s Mr. Assad’s staunch ally and has sold and provided weapons to the Syrian regime — against the wishes of the West. Critics of the nomination also say Mr. Putin has led the Russian delegation at the U.N. Security Council into blocking international intervention in Syria that could have prevented the deaths of 100,000-plus civilians.” Putin is also known as the ‘Czar of homophobia’ after signing Russia’s anti-gay 'propaganda' legislation into law, and laws which ban gay and lesbian couples from adopting Russian children. He has since claimed the laws to not infringe on the rights of ‘sexual minorities’ and said he can’t be homophobic as he has awarded gay people “state prizes or decorations for their achievements in various fields.” Putin can’t be considered for the 2013 Nobel Peace Prize unless he is put forward by a member of the voting committee, as nominations closed in February.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Thursday, 3rd October 2013 - 9:15am