Aussie Pete said:

Michael Cain has begun his case in the Anti-Discrimination Tribunal in Hobart (Australia).

Mr Cain launched his fight in 2005 after the Launceston blood collection centre in Tasmania refused his offer to donate blood. The reason for the refusal, he said, was because he had been in a sexual relationship with another man in the previous year.

Recommended by Anonymous Coward: "It will be very interesting to see which way this one will go."

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Cedric Ang said:

For those that are not actively practicing safer sex, please do so until you are certain that you and your partner are clean. Make sure both of you stay faithful to each other. No words can be stronger than that; don’t let your pants do the thinking.

Recommended by Anonymous Coward: "One of the only experience of getting anonymous testing for HIV"

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Sayoni Speak said:

The authorities are trying hard, very very hard, to make sure there is no way that attitudes can be changed in any way. What they are protecting is not families, but the shell that people live in, to make sure there is absolutely no possibility intolerant attitudes can change, because that would really mean the end of the world, if there was a little less hate in our hearts for people who are different from us. Protecting hate can be a tough job, and we extend our congratulations to the authorities for doing a fine job of it.

Recommended by Anonymous Coward: "Yet again, the MDA strikes. Rapping really does not make them cool in any way."

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One Seven said:

Our water supply was turned off at 10pm on the 25th of April 2008, Saturday. When we opened the back door to investigate and turn it back on, a few plain-clothes officers from the CID rushed in. Sam immediately tried to stop them and demanded to know what was going on. They told him that they were conducting a “spot-check". When asked what they were checking for, they simply repeated “spot-check". The officers refused to specify what they were checking for despite repeated demands. Sam also asked if they had a warrant to check the premises. They refused to reply.

Recommended by Anonymous Coward: "The Singapore police raids a local gay sauna without proper explaination or warrants."

Link (Img) and and Link (Text)

Keep377A.com said:

Sexual preference is not about civil rights and has nothing to do with equality or tolerance. Repealing S377A would in fact be the first step towards mainstreaming the homosexual lifestyle, which has been shown elsewhere to lead to:

* Calls to specify the minimum age for consensual homosexual sex
* A public education system that teaches acceptance of the homosexual lifestyle under the banner of "tolerance"
* The redefinition of marriage to include (gay) civil unions and same-sex marriages, and to extend marriage and parenthood benefits to them
* Adoption by same-sex parents

In short, repealing S377A could lead to the modification of core family values and the family unit as we know it.

The majority of Singaporeans want our children to grow up in a traditional environment that espouses healthy and wholesome traditional family values. We do not want the homosexual lifestyle to be promoted or celebrated.

Recommended by at82: "I do not agree with what you have to say, but I'll defend to the death your right to say it."

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Repeal377A.com said:

The Penal Code of Singapore, in Section 377a, provides for a jail sentence for up to two years should a man is found to have committed an act of "gross indecency" with another man.

We are collecting signatures for a letter to the PM that explains why these laws should be repealed and why doing so is for the greater good of the country.

Add your name to the list of online signatories. The completed letter with all the signatures will be compiled and delivered to the Prime Minister after the closing date.

Recommended by Anonymous Coward: "If you believe that all Singapore citizens, regardless of sexual orientation, should be treated equally within the eyes of law and society, show your support by signing this letter before October 19, 2007. You don't have much time left if you want to show your support."

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Otto Fong in RI said:

When you ask me who I am, I will answer: I am a son, a brother, a long-time companion, an uncle, a teacher, a classmate, a colleague, a part of your community, a HDB dweller, a Singaporean. And I am also gay.

Recommended by Anonymous Coward: "Wonder how the authorities will react to this?"

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PrideDEPOT and SFGate carried separate reports of two Indignation 2007 events banned by Singapore authorities.

SFGate's report titled "Singapore Bans Gay Kissing Photos" says,

Singapore's censors have banned an exhibition of photographs depicting gay men and women kissing, a gay rights activist said, calling the move "absurd."

The city-state's Media Development Authority denied organizers a license because the photographs "promote a homosexual lifestyle," Alex Au, founder of a Singapore gay rights group, People Like Us, told The Associated Press Wednesday.

PD's report titled "Singapore Police Ban Gay Rights Forum" says,

Singapore’s Ministry of Home Affairs put the clamp down on a gay rights forum that was intended to discuss sexual orientation and international law at Thailand’s Chulalongkorn University on Aug. 7 because “the event is contrary to public interest.”

Retired Canadian law professor Douglas Sanders was to speak at the event titled, “Sexual Orientation in International Law: The Case of Asia,” until government authorities shut it down.

Immigration authorities rejected Sander’s visa application, Singapore’s Home Affairs Ministry said.

Link to stories here and here.

ABC News said:

British actor Ian McKellen has urged tightly-governed Singapore to loosen up and repeal its archaic laws barring homosexual acts.

McKellen indicated the laws, which are remnants of British colonial rule, may affect a vibrant business city like Singapore, which is vying with other Asian cities to draw more foreign talent and professionals.
...
"Just treat us with respect like we treat everybody else and the world will be a better place, I think," McKellen said in a live interview on the Class 95 radio station, part of the state-linked MediaCorp group.

"Coming to Singapore where unfortunately you've still got those dreadful laws that we British left behind ... it's about time Singapore grew up, I think, and realised that gay people are here to stay," he said.

In a separate interview on MediaCorp's Channel News Asia television station, the 68-year-old McKellen said: "I have been looking for a gay bar [in Singapore] if there is such a thing ... so that's what I have been looking for."

Recommended by Anonymous Coward: "Gandalf speaks his mind. "

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Yawning Bread said:

How he jumped to this is astounding. I can't rebut this logically, because his proposition is beyond logic. Going by his line of argument, heterosexual males, on seeing too many pictures of David Beckham posing as a sex object for females to devour, will either overcompensate by trying to become predator women, or else accept their subordinate status by being no more than toyboys.

Recommended by Anonymous Coward: "I am glad I wasn't the only one who sprained my brain trying to understand the logic behind Andy Ho's badly written and poorly argued article."

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IS said:

"Got to at least give them some marks for trying :)"

Recommended by inspir3d: "Hey, at least the P65 MPs know how to entertain us for a minute or two..."

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Trevvy said:

Thio's presence in the parliament could perhaps bring out both conservative and liberal views on not just homosexuality but the role of religion in public policy. In this present global climate where religion is making a comeback in politics, even secular Singapore is no safe harbour.

Recommended by Anonymous Coward: "Extremist religious views have just entered Parliament."

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YawningBread said:

The Singapore Lions – a volleyball team – got to 4th place in their division at the Gay Games in Chicago, in July this year. The result exceeded their wildest dreams, competing against 25 other teams from around the world.

Recommended by Traminer: "Team from Singapore ranked no. 4 in international sports meet with participants from all over the world. Wonder why this is not featured in the Straits Times"

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Yawning Bread said:

If there are tons of evidence that the Earth is round and not a scrap of evidence that it is flat, what are you supposed to believe? Of course there'll be people that will say, "What evidence?" and continue to insist that their belief is as good as anyone else's. But just because they're ignorant of the evidence doesn't mean that the evidence doesn't exist.

Recommended by Anonymous Coward: "Analysis on how the gahmen tries to spin stories."

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Fridae said:

“The reaction from the police has been completely unexpected,” said Dr Stuart Koe, CEO of Fridae. “Feelin’ Good is simply a party, not unlike any party held at clubs all around Singapore. There is no legal justification for what the police has done. This is yet another example of institutionalised discrimination against gays and lesbians.”

Recommended by Anonymous Coward: "Will the govt. lose the 'pink' votes in the upcoming GE?"

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therealkaizer said:

I'd think the majority of sg_ljers are not the target audiences for the Love 97.2FM DJ Dongfang Billy aka Billy Wang's radio show. But I see a need to call him out after hearing some uninformed and damaging things he said over in his show.

I was just sitting in the living room, reading the papers when I heard him start talking about "homosexuality is a choice" and if you "make this choice and not one that is for marriage and family, you must be prepared for the consequences". AND, he was saying how they're releasing a book on the "touching stories" of ex-gays. Plus, he states that "homosexuality is a direct result of lack of family morality teaching".

Recommended by jasperthedummy: "I guess he still had some balls to say these on national radio. Seriously he should be fired. So what if he's popular among aunties if he blabber things without proof.

Related: Answers to Your Questions About Sexual Orientation and Homosexuality - APA"

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Sayoni said:

Then I saw Leslie Lung’s name, and it all crashed down around me.

Newsflash: Liberty League is an ex-gay group, insidiously hiding their real intentions behind polished words and a $100000 grant. At first, their statements sound promising - “clarification”, “human

Recommended by Anonymous Coward: "why is the govt/nyc supporting an obvious deception? don't these people read the literature? more often than not ex-gay groups tend to be religious fundies plugging their agenda"

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Sydney Morning Herald said:

When South-East Asia's largest gay party, Nation '05, kicks off today in Phuket, Thailand, it will officially mark the end of Singapore's flirtation with the pink dollar.

For four years, Singapore dallied with a more liberal policy towards gay lifestyles, warmed by the money that flowed from it and emboldened by research that showed cities with an active gay community were more creative, productive societies.

However, the rise of the new Prime Minister, Lee Hsien Loong, has been accompanied by a waning of government support for the gay population.

Recommended by Anonymous Coward: "One of the most successful gay events moves to Thailand. "

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Gay To The Bone said:

Coming out to the world is something I knew would happen sooner or later. I'm 18, going on 19 in September. I have an older brother, aged 25 and elder sister, aged 24 and a younger sister, 15. All of them know I'm gay.

It was a step I knew I had to take, especially towards my brother for he, himself, is gay.

Recommended by Anonymous Coward: "'Gay To The Bone' is an online anonymous gay/bisexual writing project that contains a lot of reader submitted coming out stories. It plans to help closeted gay/bisexual Singaporeans by providing a space for them to voice out their stories through e-mail or comments, and also to create awareness about social discriminations faced by the sexual minorities."

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IZ reloaded said

"At this church, there are no prejudices, no preconceived notions," said Gary Chan, who left his old church when its leaders discovered he was gay and asked him to quit the church band.

The status of the church says something about the place of gays and lesbians in Singapore. Though in practice homosexuality is often tolerated, gay sex is illegal here, and gay groups are unable to register as legitimate organizations.

The church, however, has managed to circumvent regulations by registering itself as a company, meaning the worship sessions are considered private gatherings. The group has moved several times, meeting in a pub, a theater and now at a low-rise commercial building.

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