Yelena Grigoryeva criticized the Russian policy on Ukraine, fought for the rights of Gays and lesbians and against the discrimination of minorities. Now she’s been murdered. From Moscow Mandlmeier.
“You thought not of himself, but of the other,” says Maxim Olenitschew in a hushed voice. He knew Elena Grigoryeva well. Both of them were in the Russian LGBT group, “Wychod” (in English: “The output”) in Saint Petersburg, active. The death of his comrade-in-arms has shaken Olenitschew and many people in the gay and lesbian Community. And not only you.
The 40-year-old Yelena Grigoryeva was on the evening of the 21. July with several knife killed stitches. She was found a few hundred meters from her house in St Petersburg in the bushes dead. The police took up investigation. There are still no Suspects. Known from Grigorjewas environment stated, however, that Grigoriev should have death threats get.
Massive Threats
“This murder were threats to both its activities as an LGBT activist, connected as well as with their criticism of Russian domestic and foreign policy,” says Ksenia Mikhailova of the DW. “Still, I couldn’t believe it when I heard of her death,” says the young lawyer who defended the murdered activist, in his own words, for example, if you stand because of “disturbance of public peace” in court, because they are LGBT-demonstrations had been organized. Mikhailova accuses the police, the death threats against your client is not taken seriously: “I’m now thinking, how you could have prevented this murder. Maybe if there was a legal mechanism in our state that would force the police to such threats of murder to pursue with all seriousness.” Such a mechanism was not there but.
Mikhailova reports of massive threats and insults against their client in the last time. They criticized that the police stopped each Time idle, although several people with their deeds in the network bragged and Yelena Grigoryeva threatened. The lawyer from but also includes persons “from nationalist circles” as a potential assassin just as a personal conflict as the Background for the fact. However, the uncertainty is just in the gay-lesbian Community is now large.
“We will not allow ourselves to be intimidated”
Mikhailova also tells of a homophobic Internet-project Named “Pila”, whose goal is the destruction of Homo is sexual: “The authors of this page to publish information about planning murders of LGBT Akivisten or whole organisations. They even publish lists of people who want to destroy you. Among these people also Yelena Grigoryeva was.”
Also Grigorjewas colleague Maxim Olenitschew know the page, but does not want to lose the courage: “the fear we have gewöhht us. Since 2013, Russia has a law against so-called gay propaganda, the people makes many LGBT life difficult. Our Association helps the Victims of stigma and discrimination. We will not allow ourselves to be intimidated. We continue to fight for our rights. After all, we live in a European country.”