Cook Islands Queen: criminalising gays 'unfair'

The' queen of the Cook Islands,' Takitumu paramount chief Marie Pa Ariki says it is unfair and unjust for gay people to be treated as criminals due to who they love and how they express that love.

The Cook Islands is one of several Pacific nations which still criminalise same-sex relations between men and offer no human rights protections to those who are widely ostracised for not being born heterosexual. Pa Ariki stated: "[Gay] people are knowledgeable and contribute to society and to home life," she says. "They are human like everyone else... we are all whanau." Read More 

Steve Jobs memorial torn down in Russia after current Apple CEO Tim Cook comes out as gay

A Russian group of companies ordered the destruction of a memorial tribute to late Apple founder Steve Jobs after the technology giant’s current CEO, Tim Cook, came out as gay last week.

ZEFS, which originally had the six-foot monument in the shape of an iPhone erected outside a college in St Petersburg in January to pay homage to the achievements of Jobs following his death from cancer in 2011, has since taken the decision to dismantle it: “After Apple CEO Tim Cook publicly called for sodomy, the monument was taken down to abide to the Russian federal law protecting children from information promoting denial of traditional family values.” Read More

HSBC UK: Business leaders have ‘huge personal responsibility’ to come out

The head of UK banking at HSBC has criticised business leaders who stay in the closet, saying it’s not acceptable they “take for granted” the work being done by others on issues of equality.

Speaking at the third-annual ‘Out on the Street’ LGBT summit in London, Antonio Simoes, who revealed he was gay last year, said business leaders have a “huge personal responsibility” to come out. At the conference, Simoes also described himself as “the short, bald, Portuguese gay guy”, adding that being “authentic” makes him a “more empathetic and better leader.” Read More

Gay people in business: Out at the top

When American politicians, television presenters, and even clergy come out of the closet these days, it barely makes the headlines. But the corporate world is different: until Apple’s boss, Tim Cook, said on October 30th that he is gay, there had never been an openly homosexual CEO of a Fortune 500 company.

The crossing of this symbolic threshold demonstrates both how much conditions have improved for gay executives and how far boardrooms lag the rest of society. Read More

Can twitter be a force against HIV discrimination?

A project analysing tweets alongside take-up of HIV services in Brazil show social media can inform public health. Advertisers have seen the potential of social media for informing their work for years, but public health is only just looking into the potential for improving the impact of campaigns. Read More

Rapid HIV Testing Roadshow An Australian First

HIV Foundation Queensland is taking its new Rapid Roadshow vehicles to the road in the coming weeks in an Australian-first concept aimed at raising awareness around 20-minute rapid HIV testing.

The eye-catching Rapid Roadshow vehicles are themed with colourful and vibrant pink flamingos and we encourage anyone seeking more information about HIV or rapid testing to come and join us on the astroturf lawn and chat to the team of HIV educators. Read More 

Nepal: Draft criminal code prohibiting infectious disease transmission singles out people with HIV and hepatitis B

Lawmakers in Nepal are considering a draft law that singles out people with HIV and hepatitis B, contrary to recommendations from UNAIDS and the Global Commission on HIV and the Law.

According to the draft text, tweeted by IRIN Humanitarian News, Article 103 ‘Prohibition of transmission HIV’ of Chapter 5, Offenses against Public Interest, Health, Safety, Facilities and Morals, criminalises people who are “aware of knowledge of one’s own positive HIV or Hepatitis B status”, who “purposefully or knowingly commit acts that would transmit Hepatitis B or HIV, give blood or coerce to give blood or come into sexual contact without precautionary measures in place, or cause entry of blood, semen, saliva, or other bodily fluids into the body of another.” Read More

Haiti's fight: As LGBT community becomes visible, anti-gay violence rises

The courtyard, tucked off a quiet road here and ringed by mango trees heavy with immature green fruit, was bedecked with a rainbow of balloons. One proclaimed “Happy Valentines Day!” though it was May. Another advertised specials at the fast-food chain Red Robin, while a third was imprinted with the Whole Foods logo. There is no Red Robin or Whole Foods in Haiti, but the energy in the courtyard of SEROvie, Haiti’s best-known LGBT health organization, had the flavor of an American gay-pride parade. Read More 

60% of Hong Kong backs anti-discrimination laws

Six in ten Hong Kong people support legal protections for LGBTI people, according to a new report. The paper, published by the Centre for Comparative and Public Law at the University of Hong Kong (HKU), comes two weeks after a three-month public consultation on the city's anti-discrimination laws.  Read More
 

Macau activists demand domestic violence bill includes gays

LGBTI activists delivered a letter to Macanese government headquarters yesterday demanding domestic violence laws include gay couples. One of the arguments for dropping gay couples from domestic violence laws was that their inclusion would be inconsistent with the penal code. Read More
 

Israel gay teens are eight times more likely to attempt suicide

Israel's gay teens are attempting suicide at an alarming rate, but the group Israel Gay Youth has said they are being ignored.  They say LGBTI teens attempt suicide at a rate of 20%, compared with 2.5% for teens overall. Read More

New Mental Health Campaign Trains Gay Men To Become “Lifeguards”

The National LGBTI Health Alliance has recently launched a campaign aimed at fostering a community conversation and giving gay men the confidence, knowledge and skills to become “lifeguards” in their social networks to support themselves, partners and friends. Research shows that gay men often see their friends struggling with anxiety and depression but lack the confidence or skills to reach out to them to help. 

Executive director Rebecca Reynolds said: “This project will provide a whole new level of support to gay male identified individuals and communities by encouraging them to be confident to know how and when to help their mates experiencing anxiety and depression and how and when to encourage their mates to seek help and support.”  Read More