Russia Bans Gay Drivers To 'Reduce Deaths From Traffic Accidents'
MOSCOW (CBS SF) -- Russia's latest law aimed at homosexuals bans transsexual and transgenders from driving, in an effort to "reduce deaths from traffic accidents."
Decree Number 1604, signed by Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev gives officials the right to deny drivers licenses to people with certain "disorders." The list includes everything from sexual preference and gender identity, to schizophrenia and pathological gambling.
Russian psychiatrists and human rights advocates have condemned the ban.
Russian authorities justify the decree citing the World Health Organization's manual of illnesses, commonly known as the ICD-10.
The ICD-10 does not classify homosexuality as a disorder. However, gender identity, transsexualism, and other conditions associated with sexual development are listed among the ICD-10's "disorders of adult personality and behaviour."
The Association of Russian Lawyers for Human Rights said "the decision demonstrates the invasion of the privacy of each person who plans to drive a vehicle," and called it "a new ground for corruption."
In 2013, Russia adopted a "homosexual propaganda" ban targeting LGBT people. President Putin signed the law making it a federal crime to distribute "gay propaganda" or material supporting "non-traditional sexual relationships" to minors.
