A new gay rights movement is stirring in Belarus and 19 year-old Sergei Androsenko is helping to lead it.

At a conference on the topic 'Do radical organizations have the right to exist?' held in Minsk on Tuesday, Androsenko found himself seated with members of Bealarus' far right organizations. The conversation quickly turned to the topic of homosexuality and Androsenko, a member of the Belarusian Initiative for Sexual and Gender Equality argued strongly on behalf of equal rights for LGBT people living in Slavic Europe.

Even the right-wingers were impressed. A member of the Pravyi Alliance said: “This young guy certainly came and got what he wanted – everyone is discussing homosexuality”.

After the conference, Androsenko spoke with the press and spoke passionately about how the gay community must engage homophobia head on:

"We, the representatives of the movement for the rights of sexual minorities, should not be scared to come to the events of our opponents.

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Things aren't looking so good in the Eastern European nation of Belarus, where there have been at least seven anti-gay attacks over the past few weeks. Many of the attacks have involved gangs of multiple men, including skin heads. Most of the victims refused to go to the police and echoed the same sentiment: "it would be a waste of time." Here you see a picture of activist Edward Tarletski, who has been attacked three times in four years. [UK Gay News]