Biodun Iginla, BBC News

Biodun Iginla, BBC News
Showing posts with label gay/lesbian issues. Show all posts
Showing posts with label gay/lesbian issues. Show all posts

Tuesday, January 13, 2015

India outrage over Goa minister's plan to 'cure' gays


13 January 2015 Last updated at 02:09 ET

by Susan Kumar and Biodun Iginla, BBC Newsbeat Online

A participant at a gay pride rally in India Many people in India still regard same-sex relationships as illegitimate

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There has been outrage in India after a minister in Goa said the state government was planning to set up centres to "cure" homosexuals.
Sports and Youth Affairs Minister Ramesh Tawadkar said treatment would be offered to lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders to make them "normal".
Many have taken to social networking sites to criticise Mr Tawadkar's "shocking statement".
India's treatment of homosexuals has been under the spotlight recently.
The Indian Supreme Court's 2013 decision to reverse a lower court order striking down a 153-year-old British colonial-era law criminalising homosexual acts caused global outrage with many describing it as "disgraceful".
According to Section 377 of the law, a same-sex relationship is an "unnatural offence" and punishable by a 10-year jail term.
A BBC correspondent in Delhi says although the law has rarely - if ever - been used to prosecute anyone for consensual sex, it has often been used by the police to harass homosexuals.
Also, in deeply conservative India, homosexuality is a taboo and many people still regard same-sex relationships as illegitimate and our correspondent says Mr Tawadkar's comment is an endorsement of that conservative thought.
"We will make LGBT [lesbians, gay, bisexual and transgender] youth normal. We will have a centre for them... like Alcoholics Anonymous centres. We will train them and give them medicines too," Mr Tawadkar said on Monday while discussing the Bharatiya Janata Party-run state government's policy report on youth.
"As in the case of other target groups such as juvenile offenders, drug afflicted youth, marginalised or migrant youth, geographically disadvantaged youth, a detailed survey would be carried out of the LGBT community so that their problems could be specifically addressed," the minister added.
The minister's statement has led to outrage in India with many people condemning it on social media sites like Twitter.
Journalist Barkha Dutt said it was the "insensitive" minister who needed treatment:
Tweet
Congress party spokesperson Priyanka Chaturvedi called it "sick":
Tweet
Writer Aparna Jain wondered: "Why are people we elect so stupid":
Tweet
Journalist Anahita Mukherji asked if there was any "cure" for Mr Tawadkar:
Tweet
Activist Samar Anarya said the minister was "homophobic" and a "fanatic":
Tweet
Meanwhile, the head of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon, who is visiting Delhi, said he "staunchly opposed the criminalisation of homosexuality" in India.
"I am proud to stand for the equality of all people - including those who are lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender," the UN chief said in a statement late on Monday.
"I speak out because laws criminalising consensual, adult same-sex relationships violate basic rights to privacy and to freedom from discrimination. Even if they are not enforced, these laws breed intolerance," he added.

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Tuesday, November 4, 2014

Gay 'hook-up' app gets big investment in China


4 November 2014 Last updated at 08:32 ET

by Tamara Kachelmeier and Biodun Iginla, Technology Reporters, BBC News. Xian Wan, BBC News, China also contributed to this report.

gay couple kissing The app claims that 15 million gay men in China are active users

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A "hook-up" app for gay men in China has secured $30m (£19m) funding from venture capitalists DCM.
Blued, created by social media site DanLan in 2012, claims to have 15 million active users.
According to news website Tech in Asia, those users seem to be mainly based in three cities - Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.
Homosexuality in China was illegal until 1997 and defined as mental disorder until 2001.
Xiaofeng Wang, an analyst at Forrester Research, said in a report for the firm that data-light services such as messenger apps enjoyed high popularity in China because mobile internet speeds were slow.
However while dating and hook-up apps are openly used by heterosexuals - a flirting app called Momo has 52 million users - the gay scene in China is traditionally rather quiet.
"Beijing's gay community is often quite reserved," wrote Rupert Angus-Mann on a website about being a tourist in the city.
"You will not find many people who feel the need to broadcast their sexuality."
Official statistics suggest that there are 118 boys for every 100 girls born to Chinese families.
Mr Angus-Mann added that China's policy of allowing families to have only one child, in place since 1979, meant most people aged 29 and under had no siblings.
"When a son is gay, he faces a hugely difficult set of decisions and it makes coming out to his family infinitely more difficult.
"Not only is he telling them he is gay, that there will probably be no grandchildren, that there will be no wedding and no wife, he is also telling them that the family line, the rhythm of hundreds of years of Chinese tradition will end with him, because there is no brother who can step into the role."

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Thursday, May 30, 2013

Nigeria lawmakers pass anti-gay marriage bill

May 30, 4:11 PM EDT


by Tokun Lawal, BBC News West Africa Desk, for the BBC's Biodun Iginla

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Gay Marriage
ABUJA, Nigeria -- Nigeria's House of Representatives voted Thursday to ban gay marriage and outlaw any groups actively supporting gay rights, endorsing a measure that also calls for 10-year prison sentences for any "public show" of affection by a same-sex couple.
Representatives appeared to unanimously approve the proposal in a voice vote, sending it immediately to President Goodluck Jonathan for him to potentially sign into law in Africa's most populous nation. It wasn't immediately clear if Jonathan would sign the measure, though gays and lesbians already face public ridicule and possible prison sentences in Nigeria.
While Western diplomats declined to immediately comment, the United Kingdom already has threatened to stop aid to nations that discriminate against gays. But those threats appear unlikely to assuage the desire of Nigerian authorities to further criminalize homosexuality, part of a wave of such laws in African nations eager to legislate against what they believe is a challenge of their traditional values by the West.
Nigeria's Senate previously passed the bill in November 2011 and the measure quietly disappeared for some time before coming up in Thursday's session of the House. A copy of the House bill, obtained by The Associated Press, mirrored what the Senate previously passed.
Under the proposed law, Nigeria would ban any same-sex marriage from being conducted in either a church or a mosque. Gay or lesbian couples who marry could face up to 14 years each in prison. Witnesses or anyone who helps couples marry could be sentenced to 10 years behind bars. Anyone taking part in a group advocating for gay rights or anyone caught in a "public show" of affection also would face 10 years in prison if convicted by a criminal court.
In its voice vote, the House simply adopted all the clauses previously passed by the Senate without any discussion. The bill now sits before Jonathan for his approval or veto. Presidential spokesman Reuben Abati did not respond to a request for comment Thursday night regarding the president's position on the measure.
Chidi Odinkalu, the chairman of Nigeria's National Human Rights Commission, said he only learned about the House's vote late Thursday night. He said the bill, if passed into law, likely would be challenged in court.
"If that's the scope, there will be serious issues," Odinkalu said.
Gay sex has been banned in Nigeria, a nation of more than 160 million people, since colonial rule by the British. Gays face open discrimination and abuse in a country divided by Christians and Muslims who almost uniformly oppose homosexuality.
Across the African continent, many countries already have made homosexuality punishable by jail sentences. Ugandan legislators introduced a bill that would impose the death penalty for some gays and lesbians, though it was amended in November to remove the threat of execution. Even in South Africa, the one country where gays can marry, lesbians have been brutally attacked and murdered in so-called "corrective rapes."
Nigeria's proposed law has drawn the interest of European Union countries, some of which already offer Nigeria's sexual minorities asylum based on gender identity. The British government recently threatened to cut aid to African countries that violate the rights of gay and lesbian citizens. However, British aid remains quite small in oil-rich Nigeria, one of the top crude suppliers to the U.S.
Hooman Nouruzi, a spokesman for the British High Commission in Nigeria's capital, Abuja, said diplomats were examining the measure and declined to immediately comment.
In 2011, U.S. President Barack Obama issued a similar directive asking officials to "ensure that U.S. diplomacy and foreign assistance promote and protect the human rights of" gays, lesbians and the transgendered. That included having diplomats "combat the criminalization" of being gay by foreign governments.
Melissa Ford, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Embassy in Abuja, did not respond to a request for comment.
Beyond that, the proposed law could have an immediate direct effect on some groups sponsored by USAID, an arm of the U.S. government. Some funding it gives to groups to combat HIV and AIDS in Nigeria includes work with gays and lesbians - something that likely would be criminalized under the proposed law.
Nigeria has one of the world's largest populations of people living with HIV and AIDS.
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Monday, April 29, 2013

The White House is commending Jason Collins for coming out as gay.

by Biodun Iginla, BBC News


WASHINGTON -- The White House is commending NBA veteran Jason Collins for becoming the first active male player in the four major American professional sports to come out as gay.
White House spokesman Jay Carney called that decision courageous and says the White House supports Collins. He says he hopes the 34-year-old center's NBA colleagues will also offer support.
"We view that as another example of the progress that has been made and the evolution that has been taking place in this country," Carney said.
Obama announced his support for gay marriage during his re-election campaign last year.
Former President Bill Clinton also voiced encouragement for Collins, asking fans, NBA colleagues and the media to support and respect him in a statement Monday. Clinton said he has known Collins since he attended Stanford University with his daughter Chelsea.
Clinton said Collins' announcement Monday is an "important moment" for professional sports and the history of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community.
Collins is "a good man who wants no more than what so many of us seek - to be able to be who we are, to do our work, to build families and to contribute to our communities," Clinton said. "For so many members of the LGBT community, these simple goals remain elusive."
Chelsea Clinton also tweeted her support for Collins Monday, saying she was proud of her friend for having the strength and courage to be the first openly gay player in the NBA.
Collins announced he is gay Monday in a first-person account posted on Sports Illustrated's website. He has played for six teams in 12 seasons, including this past season with the Washington Wizards. He is now a free agent.
The NBA player also received support from Rep. Joe Kennedy III, D-Mass., his college roommate. Kennedy tweeted Monday that "I've always been proud to call (Collins) a friend, and I'm even prouder to stand with him today."
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Sunday, September 16, 2012


LATEST UPDATE: 16/09/2012 

- CIVIL RIGHTS - FRANCE - GAY MARRIAGE - PARENTING - SOCIALIST PARTY (FRANCE)


France’s gay marriage bill: nobody’s happy

France’s government unveiled the outline of its proposed same-sex marriage law this week, sparking the inevitable ire of conservatives but also irking gay rights activists, who say that without fertility assistance, marriage alone is a lousy deal.

By Sophie PILGRIM and Biodun IGINLA, BBC News and France24  (text)
Denis Quinqueton is not romantically engaged. And he’s certainly not dreaming of a fairytale wedding, nor of becoming a dad. But he wants the right to get married and have children. And he’s going to fight tooth and nail for “the best law possible” in order to see that happen.
Quinqueton heads the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) reflection group, “Homosexuality and Socialism,” which has been working with the Socialist Party on LGBT rights issues since 1993, when even civil unions seemed like a pipe dream. Today, the PACS civil union pact has been in place for 13 years, and Quinqueton and his fellow campaigners are nearing the final step in their battle for the same legal rights as their heterosexual counterparts.

GAY MARRIAGE - A GLOBAL VIEW

Gay marriage was a hot topic during the run-up to the presidential election in May this year. While incumbent Nicolas Sarkozy laregly evaded the issue, François Hollande pledged to bring France up to date with many of its Western counterparts by making marriage available to all, thereby attracting a large chunk of the LGBT electorate.
On Tuesday, Justice Minister Christiane Taubira unveiled a rough outline of the Socialist government’s proposed bill, pencilled in for spring 2013. The new law “will extend the current arrangements of marriage to members of the same sex,” Taubira told Catholic newspaper La Croix. That means that a gay person can marry, adopt children and become a 'parent' of their partner's biological child in the same way that a straight person can today, she explained.
As to be expected, Taubira’s comments ruffled feathers among French hardline conservatives and Catholic advocates, who used the opportunity to reiterate their belief that marriage should only constitute a union between man and woman and that children should be brought up within a mother-father family unit. Christine Boutin, the leader of France's Christian Democratic Party and one of France’s most vocal conservatives, called for a referendum on the issue and warned of “heavy consequences for society” if the law were to go ahead.
Some spouses more equal than others
But among the LGBT community, the overall reaction was a sour one. While the long-fought-for law appeared to be taking shape, there was one major thing missing from the deal: medically assisted procreation.

THE PACS CIVIL UNION PACT
France introduced the 'pacte civil de solidarité' or PACS in 1999, allowing couples (both heterosexual and homosexual) to sign a solidarity contract recognised by the state.
- Inheritance rules found in marriage do not apply, and neither do parenting rights.
- The couple must file joint income tax returns.
- Participants are recognised by the state as “pacsé” rather than single.

Judith Silberfeld, editor of LGBT magazine Yagg, told FRANCE 24 that the website’s readers were “incensed” by the Socialists' apparent change of tune. “We didn’t know exactly what to expect [concerning the precisions of the bill], but we had, nonetheless, been promised medically assisted procreation (MAP),” she explained. “Ms Taubira’s comments on Tuesday threw everyone into confusion.”
MAP, which involves methods such as artificial insemination, is popular among lesbian couples starting a family in countries where they are able to access services legally (such as Belgium and Spain). In the run-up to the May election, in which Hollande was elected president, the Socialist Party promised to make MAP – already available to straight couples in France – accessible to lesbians too. “Whether someone is heterosexual or homosexual, for us that doesn’t matter,” Paris MP George Pau-Langevin said during a debate in February. “What counts for us is prepared, stable parenting.”
Catherine Michaud, who heads GayLib, an LGBT movement associated with the conservative UMP party, agrees. “A child doesn’t have the right to a mother and father,” she told FRANCE 24. “It has the right to two loving parents.” Michaud, 28, argued that the very process same-sex couples are forced to go through proves their commitment to parenting. “As a lesbian couple, me and my partner can’t just wake up in the morning and say, we’re going to have a baby,” she said. “But without MAP, procreation is near impossible. It would be terribly hypocritical for the Socialists to introduce an ‘equality’ bill without allowing us the same parenting rights as our heterosexual peers. Half-hearted equality is not equality.”
Tug of war
Denis Quinqueton is optimistic nonetheless. “This is already a step in the right direction,” he said, promising to fight “hand in hand with all other LGBT outfits” for MAP rights to be included in the law before it is finalised in spring next year. Support from the ranks of progressive parliament is likely to help: MP Bernard Roman said that he “deeply regretted” the exclusion of MAP rights from Taubira’s plan and called for an amendment to the proposal, which was swiftly backed by numerous Socialist and Green Party colleagues and heralded by the Young Socialist Movement.

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But on the other end of the spectrum, hardline conservatives have also pledged to dig their heels in. In anticipation of Taubira’s announcement, the Catholic Church-associated Civitas Institute on Sunday launched a campaign against gay marriage, to the tune of 100,000 euros. “We have six months to ‘readdress’ public opinion; to mobilise the French until they’re out protesting on the streets; and to influence enough MPs and senators until we bring this law down,” Alain Escada, leader of the group, told his supporters. The campaign was illustrated with a poster showing two scantily-clad men at a Gay Pride parade with the slogan: “Would you entrust children to these people?”
But they may find their convictions outdated: according to a BVA poll published in August, some 65 percent of French people support gay marriage and 53 percent support  adoption by homosexual couples.
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