Asia
Vietnam Recognizes Transgender People
Hanoi — Vietnam lawmakers on Tuesday passed changes to a civil code that acknowledges transgender people and gives them rights to change gender in legal documents, reflecting a major advance in the Communist government’s viewpoint on gender issues. Under the new law, which will take effect from Jan. 1, 2017, people who underwent sex change… Read more »
‘An important step’ for gay rights in China
Before she became enmeshed in a potentially groundbreaking lawsuit against the Chinese government, Chen Qiuyan was an ordinary college student struggling to come to terms with her sexuality. Early this year, the 20-year-old college junior was beginning to realize that she was a lesbian — her male classmates at Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou didn’t… Read more »
South Korean university elects openly gay student president
Activists hope student victory is a sign of change in South Korea as LGBT rights become a more prominent issue in the country. South Korea’s top university, Seoul National University, has elected 23-year-old Kim Bo-mi as president of the student body. Kim identifies as a lesbian. The results of the elections on Thursday make Kim… Read more »
Watch: Speak Production, a Vietnamese LGBT Sitcom
New Vietnamese sitcom follows lesbian relationships at a college. It’s now in its third episode so check it out below and let us know what you think. by Fridae Editor Source – Fridae
Hong Kong Pride Parade: Nearly 10K Call For Marriage Equality
An estimated 9,500 people participated in Hong Kong’s seventh annual Pride Parade. Among those calling for the government to recognize the unions of gay and lesbian couples with marriage and extend anti-discrimination laws to include sexual orientation were ten top diplomats from the United States, Britain and France, among others, the South China Morning Post… Read more »
Male rape now a crime in China
Chinese law previously only recognised sexual assault as a crime against women. Male rape is now officially a crime in China and will carry a minimum sentence of five years imprisonment. In the past, Chinese law only recognised sexual assault as an act against women, thus making it impossible for male rape victims to seek… Read more »
In Mumbai, a Community Struggling to Be Born
You Could Be on Oxford Street, or anywhere else in the world’s large cities where young gay men congregate. But the four immaculately styled men, clearly gay, are sitting in an old Irani café in Mumbai, perched on creaking mahogany chairs atop a linoleum floor, under ceiling fans and old posters from Indian Railways on… Read more »
Watch: Same-sex couples join Taiwan mass wedding
Ten same-sex couples marry in a mass wedding that officially opens to gay couples for the first time since it started in 1973 A mass wedding was held in Taiwan on Saturday with 123 couples tying the knot in a joint ceremony in Taipei. Although gay marriage is not legal in the country, 10 same-sex… Read more »
Taipei gets ready for one of the region’s largest LGBT events of the year
The last Saturday of October sees the arrival of Taipei’s Gay Pride Parade and Party As one of the largest gay events in Taiwan (and Asia), Saturday 31 October will see more than 80,000 revellers descend on the streets of Taipei. The parade starts from Gay Pride Village (Ketagalan Blvd) then moves through the streets… Read more »
Chennai, India reports 16 LGBT suicides in 18 months
LGBT groups in the South East Indian city say that the shocking statistics highlight the negative affects of Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code. Chennai Dost, a community for LGBT in Chennai, have reported that 16 of their members have committed suicide within the last year and a half. Founder of Channai Dost, Vikranth… Read more »
Japan to air first lesbian drama
Fuji television has announced the airing of Transit Girls, a drama series that will feature a lesbian love story as its central theme. Japan’s first drama centred on a lesbian love story will be aired next month according to a release from Fuji Television. A promotional photo (above) shows the two lead actresses lying in… Read more »
Anti-gay laws come into effect in Indonesia’s Aceh province
Gay sex in the region to be punishable by 100 strokes of the cane. A strictly Muslim, and increasingly conservative, province in Indonesia has enacted a law punishing gay sex between Muslims. The province is the only one in the country that is allowed to implement Sharia law. Gay sex is not illegal in the… Read more »
How Thailand Became a Global Gender-Change Destination
Beny and Yael Gangian spent more than $30,000 to help their transgender daughter Eimy complete her long-sought-for change of sexual identity. For the Israeli family, who used money saved for 18 years, borrowed from a bank and donated by family and friends, there was only one place they felt would give immediate, affordable and high-quality… Read more »
New education minister in Japan pledges support for LGBT students
Japan’s new minister of education, culture, sports, science and technology has expressed his support for LGBT students. In an interview with The Japan Times Hiroshi Hase, Japan’s recently appointed minister of education, culture, sports, science and technology, discussed the need to support LGBT students. Hase remarked that the issues facing LGBT students were not understood… Read more »
Being LGBT In Southeast Asia: Stories Of Abuse, Survival And Tremendous Courage
LGBT groups in Southeast Asia are working double-time to bring about change. This is a 10-part series on LGBT rights in Southeast Asia, which uncovers the challenges facing the LGBT community in the region and highlights the courageous work of activists there. For the next nine days, we’ll be telling the stories of each country… Read more »
Loans to fight LGBT poverty
LGBT Cambodians driven into poverty by discrimination, and sometimes forced to sell sex to survive, may soon enjoy the benefits of a new online campaign designed to raise money to help them rebuild their lives. Micro Rainbow International, a non-profit organisation aimed at lifting LGBT Cambodians out of poverty, unveiled a new crowd-sourcing platform on… Read more »
Two-Faced Thailand: The Ugly Side Of ‘Asia’s Gay Capital’
The country welcomes LGBT tourists with open arms, yet it still lacks policies to protect basic human rights. This is the final part of a 10-part series on LGBT rights in Southeast Asia, which uncovers the challenges facing the LGBT community in the region and highlights the courageous work of activists there. *** At Wat… Read more »
In China, Gay Marriage Is Between A Man And A Woman
In China there’s been a surge in xinghun, variously translated as “cooperative marriage” or “marriage-for-show”—that is, weddings between gay men and lesbian women. A young gay man in Beijing says that right now probably 50 percent of gays choose xinghun in order to assimilate into China’s conservative, family-oriented society. When gay men marry lesbian women,… Read more »
The problem with being gay in South Korea
Seoul, South Korea (CNN) Micky Kim remembers the day two years ago when he married Tony Ruse in California. “All the people from City Hall suddenly came out and congratulated us,” he recalls. “People who I don’t know are congratulating our marriage. But in (South) Korea, no-one even knows my marriage and I couldn’t even… Read more »
Gay People In Myanmar Can’t Live Openly. Here’s Why
Like several other former British colonies, the country retains a colonial-era law that criminalizes homosexuality. This is the seventh part of a 10-part series on LGBT rights in Southeast Asia, which uncovers the challenges facing the LGBT community in the region and highlights the courageous work of activists there. *** When a group of transgender… Read more »
Poverty among gay people in Cambodia common but often ignored
Phnom Penh, Cambodia Phally barely scrapes together enough money to survive by selling fried papayas on the streets of Phnom Penh. The 27-year-old gay man would like to expand his small business to sell chicken wings and desserts. But it has been impossible to get a loan, adding to a long list of problems he… Read more »
Poverty among gay people common but often ignored – campaigner
Phnom Penh – Phally barely scrapes together enough money to survive by selling fried papayas on the streets of Phnom Penh. The 27-year-old gay man would like to expand his small business to sell chicken wings and desserts. But it has been impossible to get a loan, adding to a long list of problems he… Read more »
Briton jailed in Burma for ‘insulting’ Buddha image named prisoner of conscience by Amnesty
Philip Blackwood’s family steps up pressure for release of bar manager as he is treated for depression in notorious Rangoon prison A British bar manager jailed in a notorious Rangoon prison for insulting Buddhism is to be named as a prisoner of conscience by Amnesty International as his family and human rights activists campaign for… Read more »
Myanmar election: Suu Kyi vows to lead government
Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi has vowed to lead the country if her National League for Democracy comes to power in the upcoming election. This is despite the fact that she is constitutionally barred from the presidency because she married and had children with a foreign citizen. The historic poll on 8 November… Read more »
Queer Southeast Asia: Recognition, Respect & Legitimacy
Over the past few decades, diverse new cultures and communities based on same-sex preference and transgender identity have become increasingly prominent in all the countries of Southeast Asia. Across the cultural, ethnic, and religious diversity of region, and despite the distinctive colonial and semicolonial political histories of the modern states of Southeast Asia (see Jackson… Read more »
LGBT Network Calls for Tolerance, End to Harassment
Mandalay — Burma’s Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Rights Network on Friday called on lawmakers to stop targeting and harassing the LGBT community, urging authorities to instead set their sights on strengthening the rule of law. Speaking to reporters in Burma’s second largest city, representatives of the network said they were alarmed by recent… Read more »
This Is What It’s Like To Be Queer In Nepal
And other big LGBT stories from the past week. Each week HuffPost Gay Voices and HuffPost Live takes a look back at some of the biggest queer news stories from the past week. Check back every Friday for your queer news round-up in this regular feature titled “QueerView.” This Is What It’s Like To Be… Read more »
Thailand’s equality laws come into effect
Discrimination against LGBT is now punishable by law in the country Wednesday (9 September) saw Thailand’s first discrimination laws specifically protecting LGBT people come into effect. The new 2015 Gender Equality Act, which was passed in March, punishes discrimination against gender identity or sexual orientation with up six months in jail and a fine of… Read more »
Pavlovian Priests and the Sorry State of LGBT Rights in Georgia
According to Merriam-Webster’s dictionary, the word gay refers to cheerful, lively and high spirited person. The LGBT Prague Pride Parade, which I was fortunate to observe on my recent visit to Prague, lived to the very definition of the word. What I saw was fabulous: unicorns and countless rainbow colored flags, balloons, and thousands of… Read more »
China’s censors approve first gay love story for theatrical release
A love story featuring a gay couple has become the first to get approval from China’s film regulators. The 2014 film ‘Seek McCartney’ was directed by Wang Chao. The announcement that the regulators had approved the film for a theatrical release was made by Wang on his blog. He said it was “a small step… Read more »
Singapore ends ban on visitors with HIV
Singapore will no longer ban people with HIV from visiting the country. The country moved to change its two-decade old rules, which were drawn up at a time when there was no known treatment for AIDS and little was known about HIV. The rules had permanently blacklisted all people with HIV from travelling to the… Read more »
Nepal gay parade to enshrine LGBT rights in constitution
Hundreds turned up for the colourful rally – dancing in the streets. They are demanding same-sex marriage be guaranteed in the new constitution, gay couples’ rights to adopt, buy joint property or inherit from one another. Nepal decriminalised homosexuality in 2007. It remains illegal in many South Asian countries. “Our main demand is that the… Read more »
Programme on sexual orientation and gender identity
Project DIVA Mumbai with the Humsafar trust, UNDP supported by the global fund conducted ‘sub-national/state issues on sexual orientation and gender identity, MSM and transgender population, HIV, health and human rights’ at Hotel Vivor, Friday. The key objectives of the programme were-to help establish a network of media professionals with up to date knowledge on… Read more »
How I learned to have pride in both my Sikh and gay identity
Recently, a video was published featuring Manjinder Singh Sidhu and his mother having a conversation surrounding homosexuality and the dynamics it involves in the Punjabi community. As a queer, Amritdhari, practicing Sikh, I know my own lived experiences, but I wanted to see if there were other videos out there on the same topic. That’s… Read more »
Chinese Expat Pens A Personal Story
Auckland, New Zealand – a Chinese expat, Dave Yan, who possesses a personal story of dedication, perseverance and ingenuity, released a biographical fiction novel, Over A Year, to celebrate being granted his New Zealand residency. Set in Auckland, the story surrounds the life of an international student, Dave, for the time period of over a… Read more »
Nepal issues first transgender passport
Nepal on Monday issued passport with ‘other’ category for gender as opposed to ‘male’ or ‘female’ 37-year-old LGBT rights activist has become the first person in Nepal to be issued a passport with the gender category ‘O’ for ‘other.’ Monica Shahi received her passport from Rewati Poudel, director at the Department of Passports, on Monday.… Read more »
Nepal introduces transgender passport
Authorities in Kathmandu have issued the country’s first passport to a person of a third gender. Despite progressive gender laws, transgendered individuals still face discrimination Nepal issued its first passport to a transgendered person, officials said on Monday, in what human rights group hailed as a breakthrough for gender rights. The travel documents now show… Read more »
A man in full
For women wanting to transition to men, a long and often painful process awaits. About two years after first visiting a doctor, Jimmy had his breasts removed. “Was I scared? I was horrified. But I told myself I have to be a man about it,” the 32-year-old, who was born female, said. The surgery went… Read more »
Gay US Ambassador to Vietnam and his husband
Over the last few months, US Ambassador Ted Osius and his husband Clayton Bond have become the most prominent gay couple in Vietnam. The couple, who have a toddler son and have recently adopted a baby girl, have become ambassadors for the LGBT rights movement in the Southeast Asian country. The communist government of Vietnam… Read more »
For China’s gay men, Dongdan Park in Beijing offers haven
In 1984, Ning Guofeng, a.k.a. “Lady Paris,” was arrested by police officers after visiting Dongdan Park in Beijing — the third time he was charged with “hooliganism” in seven years. Sent to a labor camp for three years, Ning, now 77 and known as “Granny Paris,” still keeps returning to the scene of his alleged… Read more »
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