UK Gay News reports on a radio interview with Russia's first modern billionaire German Sterligov:
During the radio show, the host of Cultural Shock, Ksenia Larina, asked Mr Sterligov: “I want to understand, German, what what you want to do … what to do not only with atheists but also with gays and lesbians?”
Mr. Sterligov responded: “As it is written by the Apostle Paul, Let it be their blood upon their heads.
Other guests on the programme chipped in. One asked: “This is what is written about gays and lesbians?”
“Yes, replied Mr. Sterligov. “This is what is written about the homosexuals.”
Another guest wanted clarification. “That means to kill?”
“Yes, for sure,” Mr. Sterligov confirmed.
Before this exchange, Mr. Sterligov said that he would never hire any gay man or woman to work for him. “No, well … homosexuals would not be given a job under any circumstance … never.”
“And if there is ever a law in the state requiring me to employ homosexuals, I would immediately disobey it.”
Mr Sterligov further explained his position about the laws: “I believe in God and for me the laws of God are above the laws of man. Where they coincide, I admit them. Where they are contrary to the law of God, I spit on them.”
Sterligov, known for his fundamentalist Orthodox views, amassed a huge fortune in commodities trading following the collapse of the Soviet Union and quit his job to live as a peasant in the Russian countryside.
Gay and lesbian advocates are planning to take action against Sterligov's calls for violence according to UK Gay News.
Said Article 282 director Nikolai Baev: “We intend to initiate criminal proceedings against Mr. Sterligov for his calls to violence against gays and lesbians in Russia…In the private sphere, he can preach all sorts of homophobic and xenophobic ideas. However, the public advocacy of violence and hatred is prohibited by law in Russia. We will require the application of this law to protect the rights, lives and dignity of LGBT citizens of Russia."
