Poster Of Two Men Kissing Earns Ad Agency Award – And $186,000 Fine For Moral Values Damages

An ad agency in a former Soviet Republic of Kazakhstan has been fined $186,000 by a court for producing a poster that shows two men kissing. 

Havas Worldwide Kazakhstan created the poster for an advertising competition, which it won, but the image was used in public by a local gay club, Studio 69. The controversial poster features images of 19th century Russian poet Alexander Pushkin and Kazakh composer Kurmangazy Sagyrbayuly.

The BBC reports that 34 music school students and staff filed the lawsuit, “demanding a million tenge each in moral damages.” They won that amount, which is US dollars is about $186,000.

Havas Worldwide Kazakhstan says it can’t pay the 34 million tenge ($186,000; £115,000) fine, and plans to appeal. The agency’s general director says the ruling is “nonsense”. “Not one of the 34 plaintiffs appeared in court. The whole hearing was marred by procedural violations,” Dariya Khamitzhanova tells the Kapital.kz news portal. Havas has also been ordered to issue an apology in the national media, Tengrinews agency reports.

Homosexual acts between consenting adults are legal in Kazakhstan, and Almaty is unusually liberal by Central Asian standards, but the country has seen a hardening of attitudes of late. Some government MPs have called for a ban on the “promotion of homosexuality”, along the lines of a recent Russian law, or even the outlawing of homosexual acts altogether.

This summer, the ad agency was forced to issue an apology, promising to not display the work in public. In September, Havas Worldwide Kazakhstan decided to have some fun with the poster, and on Facebook (image above) issued this taunt (translated):

I want to finish with the words of Martin Nimëllera, a prominent fighter against Nazism in its native Germany when the Nazis came for the Communists, I remained silent, I am not a Communist.

Then they came for the Social Democrats, I’m speechless, I’m not a Social Democrat.

Then they came for the trade unionists, I was speechless, I am not a member of a Trade Union.

Then they came for the Jews, I’m speechless, I’m not a Jew.

And then they came for me, and there was no one who could protest.

As they say, see you in court!

 

Image via Facebook