Blake Skjellerup is an openly-gay NZ speedskater who will compete in Sochi The Government will send a diplomat to the Winter Olympics in Sochi to keep a watch on New Zealanders in Russia. It comes after a delegation of opposition MPs led by Labour's Louisa Wall approached the Minister of Foreign Affairs Murray McCully, concerned about Russia's anti-gay 'propaganda' law. Under the law, foreigners who promote anything GLBTI can be fined, jailed and deported. New Zealand is sending openly-gay speedskater Blake Skjellerup to Sochi. Jan Logie from the Greens and Denis O'Rourke from New Zealand First were among those who joined Wall in writing to McCully in September asking for his help in protecting LGBTI people at the games from discrimination and harassment. Louisa Wall says the government's decision to ensure the safety and wellbeing of New Zealanders in Sochi is great news. "Mr McCullly has told me that the diplomat, a consular advisor will provide assistance to New Zealanders at the games," she says. "Mr McCully also wrote to us saying that the New Zealand embassy in Moscow has raised with the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs our concerns regarding the recent law changes .The Embassy is continuing to monitor the human rights situation in Russia and is working closely with like-minded missions on this. "The right of all our New Zealand team members to fully express themselves within the context of the Olympics, an international institution of such esteem, is fundamental to our full participation as equal citizens in the world. "This includes being proud to be who you are and unless one is fully able to express all they are, then this constraint can compromise the Olympic motto Citius, Altius, Fortius, which is Latin for 'Faster, Higher, Stronger'."
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Saturday, 19th October 2013 - 2:30pm