http://www.queerty.com/sex/singapore-may-allow-oral-anal-but-not-for-gays-20070917/
Singapore’s government’s getting sexual today as a new bill looks to strike down laws banning oral and anal sex. While it may sound like a great development for all people, the gays are getting left out in the cold:
Oral and anal sex in private between consenting heterosexual adults would be legalized under a bill introduced in Singapore’s parliament on Monday.
Under the city-state’s first major penal code amendments in 22 years, a section criminalizing “carnal intercourse against the order of nature” would be repealed.…But while the bill takes a softer line on heterosexual sex, a ban on acts of “gross indecency” between males will remain.
The proposed bill highlight’s Singapore’s strained perception of progress. Though willing to liberalize laws for straight people, the cultural zeitgeist still leans right. The government flexed its muscle earlier this year by cracking down on gay pride festivities.
Though gays are still held down politically, they may be getting a boost in the education system. About 110 teachers, administrators and students met last month to discuss the gays’ place in the school system. One out teacher commented:
Many life lessons are transmitted to students through this form of bonding… When parents require gay teachers not to talk about their personal lives, it curtails their ability to connect with their students, and to be themselves in the classroom.…The younger (these children) are exposed to these issues, the fewer hang-ups they may have when they grow up, and they may be more certain about who they really are.
Not all gay teachers agree, however. Another attendee says he’d rather not get into the logistics of his love life:
I’d prefer not to impose my personal values or beliefs on them, while they are still relatively immature… Being too open at this point will only cause unnecessary anxiety within the school, and among parents.
All the drama’s apparently too high a price to pay for real education.
Monday, September 17, 2007
"Swedish government funds gay rights group"
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-5466.html
17th September 2007 10:41
Tony Grew
Sida, The Swedish Agency for International Development Cooperation, a government agency under the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, has granted 1.9 million Swedish crowns (approximately 200,000 euros) to RFSL, the Swedish federation for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender rights.1.1 million Swedish crowns (116,000 euros) will go towards supporting ILGA, the International Lesbian and Gay Association.The money will finance two ILGA board meetings with the world board, participation in regional ILGA conferences, support the ILGA transgender secretariat and the women's secretariat and the part-time employment of a fundraiser.The funds donated to ILGA through the RFSL will make it easier to ILGA to co-ordinate its international work and strengthen ILGA's ability to achieve its goals.Earlier this year The Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs granted money to RFSL for financing of the first Pan African ILGA meeting in Johannesburg.ILGA is a world-wide network of national and local groups dedicated to achieving equal rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered (LGBT) people everywhere. Founded in 1978, it now has more than 560 member organisations. Every continent and around 90 countries are represented. ILGA member groups range from small collectives to national groups and entire cities.
17th September 2007 10:41
Tony Grew
Sida, The Swedish Agency for International Development Cooperation, a government agency under the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, has granted 1.9 million Swedish crowns (approximately 200,000 euros) to RFSL, the Swedish federation for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender rights.1.1 million Swedish crowns (116,000 euros) will go towards supporting ILGA, the International Lesbian and Gay Association.The money will finance two ILGA board meetings with the world board, participation in regional ILGA conferences, support the ILGA transgender secretariat and the women's secretariat and the part-time employment of a fundraiser.The funds donated to ILGA through the RFSL will make it easier to ILGA to co-ordinate its international work and strengthen ILGA's ability to achieve its goals.Earlier this year The Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs granted money to RFSL for financing of the first Pan African ILGA meeting in Johannesburg.ILGA is a world-wide network of national and local groups dedicated to achieving equal rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered (LGBT) people everywhere. Founded in 1978, it now has more than 560 member organisations. Every continent and around 90 countries are represented. ILGA member groups range from small collectives to national groups and entire cities.
"Taipei gays protest Nicaragua homophobia"
http://www.gay.com/news/article.html?2007/09/14/5
Gay activists in Taipei protested outside the Nicaraguan embassy in their city Thursday as part of an international campaign against the Latin American country's sodomy law.
The campaign, helmed by Amnesty International Mexico, calls on 10 groups around the world to fight homophobia, encouraged by the Catholic Church's steady stronghold.
Emily Wu, an Amnesty International Taiwan member, told the Taipei Times that Nicaragua is the only Latin American country with a law that prohibits sex between people of the same sex.
"That is not only a violation of the Nicaraguan Constitution, but also of international human rights," Wu said.
Nicaragua enacted an anti-sodomy law in 1992, stating that "anyone who induces, promotes, propagandizes or practices sexual intercourse between persons of the same sex commits the crime of sodomy and shall incur one to three years' imprisonment." (The Advocate)
Gay activists in Taipei protested outside the Nicaraguan embassy in their city Thursday as part of an international campaign against the Latin American country's sodomy law.
The campaign, helmed by Amnesty International Mexico, calls on 10 groups around the world to fight homophobia, encouraged by the Catholic Church's steady stronghold.
Emily Wu, an Amnesty International Taiwan member, told the Taipei Times that Nicaragua is the only Latin American country with a law that prohibits sex between people of the same sex.
"That is not only a violation of the Nicaraguan Constitution, but also of international human rights," Wu said.
Nicaragua enacted an anti-sodomy law in 1992, stating that "anyone who induces, promotes, propagandizes or practices sexual intercourse between persons of the same sex commits the crime of sodomy and shall incur one to three years' imprisonment." (The Advocate)
"Ugandan newspaper continues outing strategy"
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-5453.html
14th September 2007 11:35PinkNews.co.uk writerA tabloid newspaper in Uganda has responded to last month's first ever press conference by gay rights advocates in the country by printing lists of people it says are gay.Red Pepper's Sunday edition (click here to view) ran its "expose" of prominent gay and lesbians, under the headline "HOMO TERROR! We Name and Shame Top Gays in the City."They claimed to have "full names, workplaces, cars they drive and even where they stay."As well as describing 40 men it claims are gay, Red Pepper's expose explains "how to spot a gay man," "terminologies used by gays" and "how the gay men shaft," a lurid description of gay sex. It claims that lubricants are "sent to the gays here from abroad."The paper is notorious for its sensationalist reporting on gay and lesbian issues, and was widely condemned last year for previous "outings." However, sources in the capital Kampala report that gay rights activists have decided to ignore this latest provocation, despite the fact that the 40 men named in the article are in danger of being targeted. Maxim Anmeghichean, programme director for International Lesbian and Gay Association Europe, has just returned from Uganda. "No Ugandan to my knowledge has complained to the Ugandan government about the publication," he said in an email."Or to the Ministry of Ethics and Integrity or relevant bodies monitoring media like the Media Council. "And in absence of any national pressure letters to embassies and Ugandan authorities from abroad may be strategically awkward and support the idea promoted by the government that the fight for LGBT rights in the country does not belong to Ugandans and is promoted by the West."The idea that homosexuality is a "Western" disease is common currency in many African communities.There have been a series of government-backed attacks on the Ugandan lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community in the last year, including an illegal police raid on the home of the lesbian leader of Uganda's LGBT movement, Victor Juliet Mukasa, in July 2005."This article fingers those named for physical attack," Cary Alan Johnson, senior Africa specialist for the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC), told Gay City News. "There is a comprehensive campaign being waged against LGBT rights in Uganda. "It includes government and conservative religious leaders. Now the lower end of the media - rags like Red Pepper - are adding their hate-filled voices."The outing is the latest in a series lurid, sensationalist homophobic exposes by Red Pepper.Last month Ugandan gay rights advocates gave a press conference for the first time. Red Pepper's latest outing is a clear response to this event. "Since the gay community in Uganda has shown us that they really want to be recognised, we are saying enough is enough," the outing article reads. "Today we are helping them get the recognition they seem to so badly want by naming all of them one by one."Red Pepper is reportedly owned by Salim Saleh. According to Wikipedia, he is the half-brother of the President of Uganda, Yoweri Museveni. Formerly known as Caleb Akandwanaho, Saleh has faced allegations of corruption and the plundering of resources in the Congo. A former Uganda army chief, he is now Minister of State for Microfinance in the Ugandan government. Gay sex is punishable in Uganda by life imprisonment, under laws originally introduced by the British colonial administration in the nineteenth century.
14th September 2007 11:35PinkNews.co.uk writerA tabloid newspaper in Uganda has responded to last month's first ever press conference by gay rights advocates in the country by printing lists of people it says are gay.Red Pepper's Sunday edition (click here to view) ran its "expose" of prominent gay and lesbians, under the headline "HOMO TERROR! We Name and Shame Top Gays in the City."They claimed to have "full names, workplaces, cars they drive and even where they stay."As well as describing 40 men it claims are gay, Red Pepper's expose explains "how to spot a gay man," "terminologies used by gays" and "how the gay men shaft," a lurid description of gay sex. It claims that lubricants are "sent to the gays here from abroad."The paper is notorious for its sensationalist reporting on gay and lesbian issues, and was widely condemned last year for previous "outings." However, sources in the capital Kampala report that gay rights activists have decided to ignore this latest provocation, despite the fact that the 40 men named in the article are in danger of being targeted. Maxim Anmeghichean, programme director for International Lesbian and Gay Association Europe, has just returned from Uganda. "No Ugandan to my knowledge has complained to the Ugandan government about the publication," he said in an email."Or to the Ministry of Ethics and Integrity or relevant bodies monitoring media like the Media Council. "And in absence of any national pressure letters to embassies and Ugandan authorities from abroad may be strategically awkward and support the idea promoted by the government that the fight for LGBT rights in the country does not belong to Ugandans and is promoted by the West."The idea that homosexuality is a "Western" disease is common currency in many African communities.There have been a series of government-backed attacks on the Ugandan lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community in the last year, including an illegal police raid on the home of the lesbian leader of Uganda's LGBT movement, Victor Juliet Mukasa, in July 2005."This article fingers those named for physical attack," Cary Alan Johnson, senior Africa specialist for the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC), told Gay City News. "There is a comprehensive campaign being waged against LGBT rights in Uganda. "It includes government and conservative religious leaders. Now the lower end of the media - rags like Red Pepper - are adding their hate-filled voices."The outing is the latest in a series lurid, sensationalist homophobic exposes by Red Pepper.Last month Ugandan gay rights advocates gave a press conference for the first time. Red Pepper's latest outing is a clear response to this event. "Since the gay community in Uganda has shown us that they really want to be recognised, we are saying enough is enough," the outing article reads. "Today we are helping them get the recognition they seem to so badly want by naming all of them one by one."Red Pepper is reportedly owned by Salim Saleh. According to Wikipedia, he is the half-brother of the President of Uganda, Yoweri Museveni. Formerly known as Caleb Akandwanaho, Saleh has faced allegations of corruption and the plundering of resources in the Congo. A former Uganda army chief, he is now Minister of State for Microfinance in the Ugandan government. Gay sex is punishable in Uganda by life imprisonment, under laws originally introduced by the British colonial administration in the nineteenth century.
"Lesbian torture case to be heard in Uganda"
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-5450.html
13th September 2007 17:46
PinkNews.co.uk writer
The High Court of Uganda has over-ruled the objections of the country's Attorney General and allowed two lesbian activists who claim that police tortured them to have their case heard. In July 2005 the house of Victor Juliet Mukasa, of Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG), was raided in the middle of the night by local government officials who seized documents and other material.Another lesbian activist, Yvonne Oyoo, a Kenyan student who was in Juliet's house on the night of the raid, was arrested and detained by local government officials and then taken to a police station. Ms Oyoo was subjected to humiliating and degrading treatment. She was arrested and taken to the police station where she was stripped, supposedly in order to confirm she was a woman, and fondled and sexually harassed by police officers."This was not only very humiliating and degrading, but also a gross violation of my human rights," Oyoo said in her affidavit. Their case will start on September 21st, ruled Justice Stella Arach-Amoko. They are claiming their rights have been violated and want compensation from the state.Advocates and opponents of LGBT rights were present in the High Court in Kampala yesterday. Last month gay rights activists in Uganda spoke out about the prejudice they face in the country.In a show of defiance and bravery, around 30 people gave a press conference, the first by LGBT activists, drawing attention to the state-sponsored homophobia and transphobia they face every day.Some of the activists wore masks for fear of being identified, while others shocked journalists by outlining the brutality they had faced at the hands of police.Ugandan law outlaws homosexuality as "against the order of nature."There has been rising tension in the country over gay and lesbian rights in Uganda.Last year thirteen alleged lesbians were outed by the Ugandan tabloid newspaper Red Pepper.There have been a series of government-backed attacks on the Ugandan lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community in the last few years.
13th September 2007 17:46
PinkNews.co.uk writer
The High Court of Uganda has over-ruled the objections of the country's Attorney General and allowed two lesbian activists who claim that police tortured them to have their case heard. In July 2005 the house of Victor Juliet Mukasa, of Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG), was raided in the middle of the night by local government officials who seized documents and other material.Another lesbian activist, Yvonne Oyoo, a Kenyan student who was in Juliet's house on the night of the raid, was arrested and detained by local government officials and then taken to a police station. Ms Oyoo was subjected to humiliating and degrading treatment. She was arrested and taken to the police station where she was stripped, supposedly in order to confirm she was a woman, and fondled and sexually harassed by police officers."This was not only very humiliating and degrading, but also a gross violation of my human rights," Oyoo said in her affidavit. Their case will start on September 21st, ruled Justice Stella Arach-Amoko. They are claiming their rights have been violated and want compensation from the state.Advocates and opponents of LGBT rights were present in the High Court in Kampala yesterday. Last month gay rights activists in Uganda spoke out about the prejudice they face in the country.In a show of defiance and bravery, around 30 people gave a press conference, the first by LGBT activists, drawing attention to the state-sponsored homophobia and transphobia they face every day.Some of the activists wore masks for fear of being identified, while others shocked journalists by outlining the brutality they had faced at the hands of police.Ugandan law outlaws homosexuality as "against the order of nature."There has been rising tension in the country over gay and lesbian rights in Uganda.Last year thirteen alleged lesbians were outed by the Ugandan tabloid newspaper Red Pepper.There have been a series of government-backed attacks on the Ugandan lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community in the last few years.
"Lithuania’s TransWin Legal Victory: Nation Must Enact Medical Laws Or Pay Price"
http://www.queerty.com/news/lithuanias-transwin-legal-victory-20070917/
Lithuania’s transitioning ladies and gentleman won a judicial victory over the weekend. The European Court of Human Rights ruled that a Lithuanian legislative gap hinders trans folk’s right to a private life.
Though the European nation prohibits anti-trans discrimination and allows citizens to change their official gender, lawmakers have yet to enact laws regulating sex change operations.
Without these rules and regulations, transitioning people are left in limbo.Equality Network explains:
The Court observed that Lithuanian law had recognised transsexuals’ right to change not only their gender but also their civil status. However, there was a gap in the relevant legislation: the law regulating full gender-reassignment surgery, although drafted, had yet to be adopted yet. In the meantime, no suitable medical facilities are reasonably accessible in Lithuania.
That legislative gap had left the applicant in a situation of distressing uncertainty as to his private life and the recognition of his true identity.
Lithuanian legislators have been given three months to rectify the wrong. If it takes more than three months, the court will award the complaintant, Mr. L, 45,000 euros in damages. That money, of course, can be used to buy the transitioning FTM loads of new suits.
Lithuania’s transitioning ladies and gentleman won a judicial victory over the weekend. The European Court of Human Rights ruled that a Lithuanian legislative gap hinders trans folk’s right to a private life.
Though the European nation prohibits anti-trans discrimination and allows citizens to change their official gender, lawmakers have yet to enact laws regulating sex change operations.
Without these rules and regulations, transitioning people are left in limbo.Equality Network explains:
The Court observed that Lithuanian law had recognised transsexuals’ right to change not only their gender but also their civil status. However, there was a gap in the relevant legislation: the law regulating full gender-reassignment surgery, although drafted, had yet to be adopted yet. In the meantime, no suitable medical facilities are reasonably accessible in Lithuania.
That legislative gap had left the applicant in a situation of distressing uncertainty as to his private life and the recognition of his true identity.
Lithuanian legislators have been given three months to rectify the wrong. If it takes more than three months, the court will award the complaintant, Mr. L, 45,000 euros in damages. That money, of course, can be used to buy the transitioning FTM loads of new suits.
"Lithuania considers ban on 'propagation of homosexuality'"
http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-5444.html
13th September 2007 12:18
Tony Grew
A new law currently before the Lithuanian parliament could be amended to ban the "promotion" of gay, lesbian or bisexual relationships to children. The Protection of Minors against the Detrimental Effects of Public Information Bill will be debated by MPs later this autumn and its supporters argue that the "propagation" amendment does not contradict anti-discrimination laws. Parliamentarians claim that the still unclear definition of "propagation" of relationships outside of heterosexual marriage has "negative consequences for the physical, mental and, first and foremost, moral development of minors."Ann von Below of the Lithuanian Gay League, an LGBT organisation active since 1994, told PinkNews.co.uk:"The sad fact that supporters of the new bill claim that it doesn't contradict anti-discrimination laws, suggests that either the concept of discrimination has been grossly misunderstood by some Lithuanian politicians, or there is a fundamentally undemocratic current running in the Lithuanian parliament. "Either way, the recent development could result in a tragic step backwards for the development of Lithuanian democracy. "We at the Lithuanian Gay League have written to the Lithuanian parliament, and have asked our allies in the European parliament to do the same. "We are hoping that a joint European denunciation will help Lithuanian politicians realise just how unacceptable the proposed bill really is."Margarita Jankauskaite, project manager for the Centre of Equality Advancement and ambassador for the European Commission Campaign "For Diversity, Against Discrimination," claims that the proposed amendment is contradictory to the legislation and the values of the European Union. She also questioned what it means to distort family values; according to statistics, 56% of the families in Lithuania falls apart, and one third of children are being born into unmarried families.In February a poll of members of the Lithuanian parliament revealed that over half of them agree that homosexuality is a perversion.The survey reflected a deeply ingrained homophobia in Lithuanian society. Homosexual sex was legalised in Lithuania in 1993. Many of the MPs who agreed with the Church validated their beliefs by asserting that homosexuality is either an illness or a mental disability. The World Health Organisation removed homosexuality from its list of diseases in 1990. A poll last December found that only 17% of Lithuanians support gay marriage. Lithuania joined the EU in 2004. That year the age of consent for homosexual sex was lowered from 18 to 14 to bring it in line with the age of consent for heterosexual sex.
13th September 2007 12:18
Tony Grew
A new law currently before the Lithuanian parliament could be amended to ban the "promotion" of gay, lesbian or bisexual relationships to children. The Protection of Minors against the Detrimental Effects of Public Information Bill will be debated by MPs later this autumn and its supporters argue that the "propagation" amendment does not contradict anti-discrimination laws. Parliamentarians claim that the still unclear definition of "propagation" of relationships outside of heterosexual marriage has "negative consequences for the physical, mental and, first and foremost, moral development of minors."Ann von Below of the Lithuanian Gay League, an LGBT organisation active since 1994, told PinkNews.co.uk:"The sad fact that supporters of the new bill claim that it doesn't contradict anti-discrimination laws, suggests that either the concept of discrimination has been grossly misunderstood by some Lithuanian politicians, or there is a fundamentally undemocratic current running in the Lithuanian parliament. "Either way, the recent development could result in a tragic step backwards for the development of Lithuanian democracy. "We at the Lithuanian Gay League have written to the Lithuanian parliament, and have asked our allies in the European parliament to do the same. "We are hoping that a joint European denunciation will help Lithuanian politicians realise just how unacceptable the proposed bill really is."Margarita Jankauskaite, project manager for the Centre of Equality Advancement and ambassador for the European Commission Campaign "For Diversity, Against Discrimination," claims that the proposed amendment is contradictory to the legislation and the values of the European Union. She also questioned what it means to distort family values; according to statistics, 56% of the families in Lithuania falls apart, and one third of children are being born into unmarried families.In February a poll of members of the Lithuanian parliament revealed that over half of them agree that homosexuality is a perversion.The survey reflected a deeply ingrained homophobia in Lithuanian society. Homosexual sex was legalised in Lithuania in 1993. Many of the MPs who agreed with the Church validated their beliefs by asserting that homosexuality is either an illness or a mental disability. The World Health Organisation removed homosexuality from its list of diseases in 1990. A poll last December found that only 17% of Lithuanians support gay marriage. Lithuania joined the EU in 2004. That year the age of consent for homosexual sex was lowered from 18 to 14 to bring it in line with the age of consent for heterosexual sex.
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