Tag: china gay rights

China’s “homowives” are becoming unlikely champions for gay rights

After her marriage was over, just looking at a wedding photo would make Qiu Xuan feel awful. The 29-year-old, a video editor at a communications company in Guangzhou, could tell by the picture that she wasn’t half of a happy couple that day, even though she was the one wearing a white veil. The photo… Read more »

Families must end LGBTI violence and improve rights in Asia

Bangkok (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Some of those most guilty of violence and discrimination against gays, lesbians and transgender people in Asia are their families, which must instead play a key role in improving LGBTI rights, activists from the region said. Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people (LGBTI) in Asia face the threat of… Read more »

American firm invests $30 million in Chinese gay dating app

Billing itself as the first of its kind in China, Blued, a popular gay dating app, is anything but with news that a group of American venture capitalists will be investing 30 million dollars in the start-up. The app combines the immediacy and locality-based functionality of similar applications like Grindr and Scruff, but also enables… Read more »

WHO: ‘China is witnessing an evolving HIV epidemic’

With an estimated 800,000 people living in China with HIV/AIDS, the WHO’s country representative Bernhard Schwartlaender tells DW the nation needs to do more to prevent infection and eliminate stigma and discrimination. Around the world, there were around 35 million people living with HIV in 2013, and 2.1 million people becoming newly infected, according to… Read more »

Being gay in China: Does the rainbow flag fly free?

Editor’s note: In this month’s episode of On China join Kristie Lu Stout for a revealing conversation with China’s leading gay rights advocates. The show premieres at 5:30pm Hong Kong time on Thursday. For other air times please click here. Beijing (CNN) — In this narrow Beijing hutong, the rainbow flag flies free. I’m in… Read more »

Gay-dating app finds financial boost

A former policeman who founded a dating app for gay men said he wanted to liberate fellow homosexuals across the world after the app pulled in $30 million in third-round financing. Geng Le, founder of Blued, made the high-profile announcement after Apple CEO Tim Cook acknowledged his homosexuality, which Geng said was a great encouragement.… Read more »

China: Gay rights activists in Macau demand domestic violence bill includes gay couples

Gay rights activists in Macau have delivered a letter to the government headquarters, demanding same-sex couples to be re-introduced into the domestic violence bill. Rainbow of Macau – the city’s first gay rights group – was founded after gay couples were dropped from the legislation in November 2012. In the letter addressed to Justice Secretary… Read more »

Chinese HIV vaccine finishes safety testing

A new HIV/AIDS vaccine, developed by Chinese scientists, has completed its safety testing stage, the results of which will soon be submitted to the Chinese authorities, experts said during the 2014 National Conference on HIV/AIDS held in Beijing on Tuesday. Shao Yiming, AIDS expert at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, told the… Read more »

Gay rights storm in Beijing as senior British diplomat marries boyfriend at ambassador’s residence

It had all the hallmarks of a traditional British wedding with a three-tier cake, bagpipes, a garden party and even “Keep Calm and Marry On” orders of service, but the Beijing wedding ceremony of a senior British diplomat to his male partner has sparked a fierce debate over gay rights in China. On Saturday Brian… Read more »

Chinese man sues gay ‘cure’ clinic after electric shock treatments

A man hopes to have the practice of gay “cure” therapy banned in China, as he is suing a clinic which performed electroshock treatment on him. The 30-year-old man who has only been identified by his pseudonym Xiao Zhen, filed his lawsuit back in July. It is the first of its kind, and is hoped… Read more »

Chinese society still far from accepting gays, lesbians

China: Despite the LGBT community beginning to be more active in China, society is still far from accepting them without discrimination says activists and social surveys “It’s a lot of pressure for gays to hide their real identity,” says Geng Le, founder of China’s largest dating app for Chinese gay guys. “Once you reach a… Read more »

Peaches and Sleeves: A History of Homosexuality in China

June is gay pride month, with worldwide festivities of parades, parties and remembrance marking the occasion. Major cities in China, including Shanghai and Beijing, are celebrating gay pride month in their own unique ways. The issue of human rights, and the contemporary struggle of homosexuals the world over for acceptance and integration, is a central… Read more »

China: students vulnerable to HIV/AIDS

China’s gay students aged 15 to 24 are increasingly vulnerable to HIV/AIDS and hence in need of a more targeted approach to curb the spread of infection, says a senior health official. “To contain the spread of HIV among youths, more forceful and targeted approaches are urgently needed, such as large-scale screening projects — like… Read more »

Gay sex poses HIV threat for youth

More targeted approaches are needed to fight the increasing threat of HIV/AIDS among Chinese students aged 15 to 24, a senior health official said. “To contain the spread of HIV among youths, more forceful and targeted approaches are urgently needed, such as large-scale screening projects — like the one being carried out in Henan province… Read more »

Chinese women find self emancipation in male gay erotica

China’s hugely popular male gay erotic stories are written mostly by women who project their wish for emancipation on gay community, say social analysts. ‘‘I think Chinese culture is still harsh on women in terms of how far they can go in developing a fantasy life or erotic art forms,’’ Katrien Jacobs, a Chinese researcher… Read more »

Beijing court agrees to hear gay ‘conversion therapy’ lawsuit

A Beijing court has agreed to hear a case against a Chinese clinic offering gay “conversion therapy” a move that activists hope will usher in an era or tolerance. The court has agreed to proceed with the lawsuit against Chongqing-based Xin Yu Piao Xiang for offering to turn gay men straight through hypnosis and also… Read more »

Beijing court agrees to hear gay ‘conversion therapy’ lawsuit

China: A Beijing court has agreed to hear a case against a Chinese clinic offering gay “conversion therapy” a move that activists hope will usher in an era or tolerance. The court has agreed to proceed with the lawsuit against Chongqing-based Xin Yu Piao Xiang for offering to turn gay men straight through hypnosis and… Read more »

Beijing police detain nine activists meeting to discuss anti-gay discrimination

Beijing police May 7 detained as many as nine civil society activists meeting for a seminar to discuss obstacles facing gay groups wishing to register as nongovernmental organizations in China. The group had advertised itself as an event examining “civil society and the state,” reported sinosphere.blogs.nytimes.com. The report suspects that the arrests and detention were… Read more »

Nepal: Increased Pressure from China Threatens Tibetans

Authorities Increase Surveillance and Abuses Against Refugees (Kathmandu) – Nepal has imposed increasing restrictions on Tibetans living in the country as a result of strong pressure from China, Human Rights Watch said in a new report published today. The new Nepali government should make it clear to China that it will accept Tibetans who flee… Read more »

Welcome to Gay China TV

Gay Star News talks to Xiaogang Wei, founder of Queer Comrades, China’s online LGBT TV channel It’s a depressing thought, but to a certain extent TV defines who we are as a society. Is the increase of gay characters on TV shows in the West a reflection of greater tolerance? Or is society more tolerant… Read more »