Belarus Cracks Down on LGBTQ+ Rights

0:00It's April 2nd. This is Canada News Today, AI-powered stories from your city. I'm Cory with the story. Belarus just passed a harsh new law cracking down on anything seen as promoting LGBTQ plus ideas, much like what's already in place next door in Russia. Their parliament gave it final approval this week, and it's headed straight to President Alexander Lukashenko, who's expected to sign a quick. The bill targets talk of homosexual relations, gender changes, skipping kids, or even pedophilia, hitting folks with fines, community work, or up to 15 days in jail. Belarus dropped criminal charges for homosexuality back in 1994 after the Soviet breakup, but they've never backed same-sex marriages. Or real protections for queer rights. Lukashenko's ruled this 9.5 million person nation with a tight grip for over 30 years, often slamming homosexuality in public. The country spaced heavy western sanctions for human rights abuses, and letting Russia

1:00stage its Ukraine invasion from Belarus' soil back in 20. 22. LGBTQ plus advocates say, repression was already bad raids on clubs, beatings, KGB blackmail, but this gives cops legal cover to ramp it up. Groups report at least 12 persecution cases in the last 3 months, with fears now spiking over medicine access for trans folks in a rush for, psych help, or escape plans. It's pulling straight from Russia's playbook, where gender cares banned, the movement's labeled extremist, and jail time awaits promoters. As Belarus tightens the screws, more lives hang in the balance across the region.