Tajikistan has drawn up a register of people the government perceive to be LGBTI+ and has indicated that those on the register will be required to undergo mandatory sexual health checks.

A publication, created by the State Prosecutor’s Office, announced the creation of the register, saying they had researched the LGBTI community in the country and established who was gay and lesbian.

The prosecutor’s article said 319 gay men and 48 lesbians were identified by federal prosecutors as part of operations called “Purge” and “Morality”.

Tajikistan abolished laws criminalizing homosexuality in 1998, but being gay has retained a lot of stigma in society.

There have been growing concerns over the safety of LGBT communities across Muslim-majority regions of the former Soviet Union.

In March, Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta said authorities in the Russian region of Chechnya were imprisoning and torturing gay men. While there have also been reports of gay men being tortured in Azerbaijan.

OIP Staff