Nikolai Alekseev One of Russia's highest-profile gay rights activists has disappeared after being arrested just before boarding a flight from Moscow to Geneva. Nikolai Alekseev was about to board a Swiss Air Lines flight and had passed through passport control when he was arrested by Russian border police. Swissair was required to cancel his boarding pass and off-load his already-stowed baggage. A wide range of Russian police and security forces have denied any involvement in Alekeev's disappearance or any knowledge of his whereabouts. However, a consensus is growing amongst glbt activists that he has been taken by the successor to the KGB, the FSB, to its Lubyanka headquarters. The Russian media are reporting that an opposition spokesman says the authorities are demanding that Alekseev withdraw his cases against Russia in the European Court of Human Rights.Under Russian law, enforcement authorities have no right to detain people for long periods without charges and without giving reasons for the detention.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Thursday, 16th September 2010 - 11:01pm