MOSCOW, November 8 (RIA Novosti) – The European Union’s top court ruled on Thursday that homosexuals who face persecution in their home country should be allowed to stay in the EU.
The Luxembourg-based European Court of Justice said the existence of routinely enforced laws to imprison homosexuals “may constitute an act of persecution.”
The court proceedings, aimed to clarify European asylum procedures, were initiated by a Dutch court and concerned three asylum seekers from Sierra Leone, Uganda and Senegal.
The case was heard the day after Dutch Foreign Minister Frans Timmermans said his country would offer asylum to Russians claiming discrimination under a recently introduced anti-gay propaganda law.
The law, signed earlier this year by Russian President Vladimir Putin, imposes fines for the promotion of non-traditional sexual relations among minors.