It has recently been reported that Chechnya has been imprisoning men because they are gay. They are being sent to what seems to be concentration camps, where they are tortured and murdered. Seeing this as a headline in the year 2017 is preposterous, but it is all thanks to their leader, Ramzan Kadyrov.
Kadyrov took over as president of Chechnya in 2007. Since then, he has proven to be one of the strangest leaders in the modern world. In addition to being an unstable person, he is one of the only world leaders that actually runs their own Instagram account. Spoiler: it is nothing short of strange. Pictures with military leaders and MMA fighters litter the newsfeed of those who follow. This is unsurprising because Kadyrov is only 40 years old, surely having an interest in what is popular culturally.
Kadyrov is presumably a close friend with Vladimir Putin. The two went on camera last week to discuss the allegations of the torture and murder of gay men, of which Kadyrov promptly denied. To some, including me, it looked like a show of support from Putin rather than a chance for Kadyrov to explain what is going on in his republic.
I can’t believe that something like this is happening in today’s age. Maybe this is because being gay is normal in America, with an overwhelming majority of the country supporting gay rights (and rightfully so). However, countries across the globe seem to still be fighting a war that should have already been won.
Putin has taken extremely negative stances toward gay people in his country. Through Kadyrov, Putin may be testing the waters to see how the international community may react. Putin may be telling Kadyrov to test the limits of what a nation can do to its gay population. By oppressing the people, the leaders stay in power.
One of the more absurd things that I have ever read was something that I came across when I was researching this problem in Chechnya. The Chechen leader’s spokesperson reported that gay people don’t exist in Russia. This is flat-out ridiculous. Sitting back and reading this in a country like the United States, where we have been relatively progressive with gay rights, is unbelievable.
Both Kadyrov and Putin should be ashamed of themselves, but they won’t be. They will continue to run an oppressive regime and there is nothing that can be done by the United States, directly, to stop it. By engaging in this problem militarily, we would start a war that wouldn’t quite make sense. However, by doing nothing, we will perpetuate the problem.
The United States needs to suggest sanctions on Russia, specifically the Chechen region, during the next United Nations meeting for what they have done to the gay community. No man or woman should be oppressed because of who they find attractive, for it is not up to the leaders to decide. People should have the right to choose their life partner without the help of the government above them.
Make no mistake, I am not calling for any action by the United States of America other than demanding the fact that the UN formally recognize these atrocities. These are humanitarian crimes. What Kadyrov has done to his people are similar to the war crimes that haven’t been seen since the eras of Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin.
The most important thing is to end this travesty before it becomes a countrywide problem. No matter if they are an ally or an enemy, the last thing that I would want to see is the systematic oppression of the gay community.
