Brazil is guaranteeing same-sex couples the right to access assisted fertilization, according to the Huffington Post. A new decree that appears in the government's official gazette stipulates that in vitro techniques must be permitted for both gay couples and single people. The head of the Federal Medical Council says the new decree is in step with current social mores.
In France, there has been a spike in hate crimes after passage of the marriage-equality bill, according to PolicyMic.com . Since the bill passed April 23, anti-gay extremists have headed violent and fascist protests against police; sent explosive letters to French Parliament; defaced a French LGBT center; and randomly attacked gay men in Paris, Bordeaux, Nice and Lille. Comedienne Frigide Barjot, who heads the anti-gay group Manif pour Tous, said the increased violence is because of the way the Marriage for All bill is being imposed.
Thousands of people marched in Tokyo at the start of Japan's first "Rainbow Week," a series of events aimed at supporting sexual minorities, the Daily Nation reported. Organizers said about 12,000 people took part in the parade, which has been running for several years; the program concluded May 6.
The controversial "gay propaganda" law as well as the memory of the arrest and detention of 17 gay-rights advocates didn't stop about 100 LGBT activists from marching with a pro-gay contingent in the recent May Day parade in St. Petersburg, Russia, SouthFloridaGayNews.com noted. The activists came together with a larger crowd celebrating International Workers' Day and held signs that read, "Repeal the Shameful Homophobic Law! Let's Stop Hate and Discrimination Together!" The activists risked arrest, and could have faced up to $17,000 in fines for "promoting homosexuality" and "pedophilia" among minors because the advocates participated in the parade.
Michaela Biancofiore, a junior Italian equal opportunities minister, was removed from her post fewer than 24 hours after being sworn in to the new coalition government after she said gays invited discrimination by "ghettoizing" themselves, according to Reuters. Gay-rights groups protested after Biancofiore, a parliamentarian from former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's centre-right People of Freedom party was made an undersecretary in the equal opportunities ministry. She later said, "For once, I would like to see gay associations, instead of 'ghettoizing' themselves ... say something to condemn the recent spate of killings of women [in Italy]. All they do is defend their own interests."
In New Zealand, the Human Rights Tribunal has decided to reserve its decision in the case of the man who claims the Anglican Church is stopping him becoming a priest because he is gay, according to OneNews. Eugene Sisneros, 38, has taken a human-rights case against Bishop Ross Bay for refusing him entry into the training program for clergy. Deciding to reserve its decision, the tribunal is now considering if the Anglican bishop of Auckland has broken the law by excluding Sisneros.
A gay man in Pakistan has said that life is easier in his home country than it is in the United States, according to the Daily Times. A man identified only as Qasim, 41, told the Pakistani publication that the only weddings they attend in Pakistan are arranged unions between their gay friends and unsuspecting women. However, he added that in Pakistan, "We can hold hands. We can sit casually like this. Nobody gives it a second thought in Pakistan." Qasim also said he is never insulted in the street, or called names— something that happened when he lived in the States.
Nigel Evans, a gay man who is deputy speaker of Britain's House of Commons, was arrested on charges of raping one man and sexually assaulting another in the past four years—charges Evans vehemently denies, according to Advocate.com . Evans, a member of the Conservative Party, was elected to Parliament in 1992 and became one of three deputy speakers of the House of Commons in June 2010. He will step aside from his duties temporarily while fighting the charges.
Mariela Castro Espin—the director of the Cuban National Center for Sex Education (CENESEX) in Havana, Cuba, and a deputy of Cuba's parliament, the National Assembly of People's Power—spoke at the Equality Forum in Philadelphia on May 3, according to Workers.org . Castro Espin (who received the International Ally for LGBT Equality Award) has spearheaded a number of campaigns over the last decade to promote acceptance of LGBT Cubans and to curb the spread of HIV/AIDS on the island. Castro Espin had reportedly been denied entry into the States; however, that decision was reversed.
Amnesty International is calling for the immediate release of two Zambian men who have been denied bail after being arrested for allegedly having sex "against the order of nature," according to an Advocate.com item. Homosexuality, sodomy, or any "carnal knowledge against the order of nature" is illegal in Zambia, as it is in several African nations. However, James Mwape and Philip Mubiana, the two men charged, contest the allegations that they had sex with each other and refused to accept a plea bargain without the presence of their lawyers.
In England, two straight teenagers, Nathan and Ross, have launched a campaign to encourage people to "Take The Pledge" in support of the LGBTQ community, according to a press release. The Internet-based campaign on www.skelat.com/LGBTQ.html urges supporters to download a template which has space for their name and a paragraph on why they support the LGBTQ community. Participants are then encouraged to take a photograph of themselves holding the completed "pledge" and upload it to the Skelat.com website.
In Toronto, City Councillor Doug Ford, the older brother of Mayor Rob Ford, landed himself in hot water when he said that proposed showers in Nathan Phillips Square would "turn into nothing but a bathhouse," according to the Huffington Post. He also asked whether there would be "towel boys" at the facility. After being verbally flogged on Twitter, Ford first defended himself and said he wasn't homophobic, but later apologized for the comment.
Authorities continue to investigate the death of a gay Russian man whose body was found near the city of Volgograd May 10, the Washington Blade reported. Vladislav Tornovoi's body was found in the courtyard of an apartment building outside the southern Russian city. Local media reported that Tornovoi's assailants sodomized him with empty beer bottles and set his body on fire after he came out to them.
An LGBT-rights march in Santiago, Chile, drew more than 50,000 people, according to the Washington Blade. Chilean folk singer Camila Moreno; presidential candidates Andrés Velasco, Tomas Jocelyn-Holt, Marco Enriquez-Ominami and Marcel Claude; and Rafael Dochao, the European Union's ambassador to Chile, took part in the event that also commemorated the International Day Against Homophobia. Former President Michelle Bachelet endorsed the event in a letter.
In the Philippines, the gay political party Ang Ladlad was hoping to make a dent in midterm elections being held the week of May 12, according to ChannelNewsAsia.com . Bemz Benedito, a congressional nominee from Ang Ladlad, said, "We are fighting for equality; we're fighting for equal rights. Those laws and protection under the law being enjoyed by heterosexuals should be given to the LGBT Filipinos as well." The elections commission has twice denied the group accreditation, the last time in 2010 on what it said were moral grounds.
Brazil's National Council of Justice voted 14-1 to approve a resolution that prohibits public notaries across the country to deny same-sex couples access to marriage, according to an AllOut.org press release. Brazil's deputy general prosecutor, Francisco Sanseverino, said the Brazilian Federal Public Ministry would not appeal the decision.
