Jennifer Lopez has apologized after being the subject of a barrage of criticism for singing "Happy Birthday" to Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow, the leader of Turkmenistan—a country described by human-rights groups as "among the most repressive in the world," according to TheWrap.com . Lopez's publicist said the event was vetted by Lopez's staff: "Had there been knowledge of human-rights issues any kind, Jennifer would not have attended." The birthday serenade was a last-minute request made by the China National Petroleum Corp., which hosted the event.
In Senegal, President Obama urged African leaders to extend equal rights to gays and lesbians; however, the country's president, Macky Sall, rebuked Obama, saying his country "still isn't ready" to decriminalize homosexuality, according to Yahoo! News. Obama opened his weeklong trip to Africa one day after the U.S. Supreme Court expanded federal benefits for married gay couples, saying it was a "proud day for America." Sall said that Senegal is "very tolerant," but is "still not ready to decriminalize homosexuality."
A record 32 countries are participating in Mr. Gay World 2013, which forms part of the Cultural Programme and Human Rights Conference of the worldOutgames, to be held in Antwerp, Belgium, July 31-Aug. 11, according to a press release. The competition culminates in a finale to be held at the Elckerlijc Theatre Aug. 4. Among the countries sending representatives to Mr. Gay World are Canada, the United States, Denmark, Myanmar, Bulgaria, Mexico and South Africa.
The Council of Europe (CoE) told Moroccan lawmakers to decriminalize a law banning and severely punishing gay sex, according to Gay Star News. CoE's assembly expressed "serious concern that the Penal Code criminalizes consensual sexual relations between persons of the same sex, with penalties of between six months and three years in prison." Article 489 of the Penal Code of Morocco criminalizes "lewd or unnatural acts with an individual of the same sex."
Also in Morocco, Justice Minister Mustafa Ramid said the country will not accept same-sex marriage, according to Gay Star News. Ramid said that Morocco is very opposed to revising a legal agreement with France that says any marriage between two nationals of the country would mutually recognized. Acceptance would be "impossible," as it "threatens public order in Morocco," stated Ramid, who belongs to the Islamist Justice and Development Party.
For the first time in his three years as Toronto's mayor, Rob Ford attended the annual rainbow flag-raising event on the city hall's roof, according to a Towleroad item. Ford—who has never marched in Toronto Pride's signature parade, is against same-sex marriage and who recently voted against funding said parade—reportedly received a tepid response upon his arrival. Also, in a video in which he appears to be smoking crack cocaine, Ford reportedly uses an anti-gay slur to describe federal Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau.
In London, thieves stole a plaque dedicated to the memory of Jody Dobrowski, a 24-year-old man who was beaten to death by anti-gay thugs in 2005, Gay Star News noted. In 2006, two men were jailed for life for the gay youth's murder. In 2007, a film based on Dobrowski's life was made called Clapham Junction. Jim Foley, from Wandsworth Police, said they were keeping an open mind about the motive behind the theft.
An all-gay team of developers has launched China's first gay-targeted "social networking" app, Queerty.com reported. The team is answering critics by saying that it's not another "hook up or shut up" style app, but a place where gay men can discover shared interests and "events" to attend where they can discuss said shared interests. The app, Zank, is the second project on creator Lin Jueding's plate; Jueding previously launched China's first gay social networking site, Feizan.com .
In Russia, all the participants in the June 29 St. Petersburg gay pride parade were arrested and detained in police vans, according to Gay Star News. In addition, anti-gay protestors badly beat some of the participants. Five Russian gay couples—who, in a historical legal move applied for marriage licenses the previous day—were also detained. In a statement, All Out Director of Communications Joe Mirabella said, "The world urges President [Vladimir] Putin to show love and compassion for his fellow citizens who simply want to be who they are without sacrificing their family or freedom, safety or dignity."
Vancouver's Icon Empire Press, a gay business, was notified that its books would no longer be welcome by German publisher and retailer Weltbild, which claims to be the second-largest German-language online retailer and sells nearly one-fifth of all books in Germany, DailyXtra.com reported. According to Icon publicist Robert Christofle, Icon received a letter from Weltbild saying it would not carry the books because they conflict with the company's mission to promote "traditional values." Weltbild is entirely owned by the Catholic Church's German dioceses.
In Canada, Nova Scotia will soon fund gender-reassignment surgery for its transgender residents, according to NovaScotia.ca. Health and Wellness Minister David Wilson said he came to the decision after reviewing the medical evidence and the policies of other provinces that fund this procedure. Section 4.8 of the MSI Physician's Manual that prohibits funding for this surgery will be immediately removed. Nova Scotia will be the eighth Canadian province to cover gender-reassignment surgery.
In Israel, the state's witness in the Barnoar gay-club murder case has been caught, a few days after he escaped from police custody, according to Israel National News. He had been hiding out in a central Tel Aviv apartment. A gunman entered the Barnoar Aug. 1, 2009, and shot more than a dozen of the people there, most of them gay youths; two of the casualties died and two others were premanently crippled.
Sweden held its first gay Jewish wedding, at the Great Synagogue of Stockholm, according to Haaretz.com . Ruben Ben Dor and Stefan Gustafsson, who have been living together for 28 years, were wed at a ceremony conducted by Rabbi David Lazar and attended by approximately 50 guests. The couple have reportedly been members of the Great Synagogue of Stockholm, a Conservative congregation, since 1990, when Gustafsson returned to Sweden after living in Israel.
Margherita Hack—an astrophysicist who championed civil rights in her native Italy—died in the Adriatic Sea town of Trieste, where she had headed an astronomical observatory, at age 91, according to StarTribune.com . An atheist who decried Vatican influence on Italian politicians, Hack helped fight a successful battle to legalize abortion in Italy. She unsuccessfully lobbied for the right to euthanasia and also championed gay rights.
In Jamaica, several ministers led a revival meeting to oppose efforts to overturn the Caribbean country's anti-sodomy law and turn back what they see as increasing acceptance of homosexuality, according to SouthFloridaGayNews.com . About 1,500 people gathered in a central Kingston park for a religious service two days before a rare court challenge to Jamaica's anti-sodomy law. A similar prayer meeting was held in the northern city of Montego Bay.
In the Dominican Republic, religious groups have objected to President Obama's nomination of gay man James "Wally" Brewster as the U.S. ambassador to their country, according to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. Brewster would be the seventh out gay U.S. ambassador in history, but opponents are asking the administration of Dominican President Danilo Medina to reject his nomination. Rev. Cristobal Cardozo, leader of the Dominican Evangelical Fraternity, said he is worried about the message that Brewster's presence might send.
In South Africa, 26-year-old lesbian Duduzile Zozo was raped with a toilet brush and murdered in what is believed to have been a hate crime in the township of Ekurhuleni, according to Gay Star News. LGBT activists have called upon South Africa's government to act now against hate crimes and asked President Barack Obama, who was visiting the country, to raise the issue of the rise in hate crimes against gay people. Zozo's mother said she suspects her daughter was murdered because of her sexuality.
In Ireland, openly gay onetime presidential hopeful David Norris has revealed that he's dealing with cancer, according to the Irish Times. The Independent senator, 68, said he is undergoing treatment at St Vincent's Private Hospital. He said the cancer is related to viral hepatitis he contracted from tainted drinking water in Eastern Europe in 1994.
On his Facebook page, Vincent Wijeysingha (wee-jay-sing-ga) became the first politician in Singapore to come out of the closet, according to the Huffington Post. Wijeysingha, treasurer of the Singapore Democratic Party, said that he wants a law that makes gay behavior illegal off the books. The decades-old law makes ''gross indecency'' between men punishable by up to two years in prison.
In Greece, the country's far-right health minister has reintroduced a measure to allow the police to carry out forced HIV tests, according to Pink News. Introduced shortly before the May 2012 general election, former deputy health minister Fotini Skopouli suspended the policy several weeks ago. However, Adonis Georgiadis, Greece's new health minister, has reintroduced the policy.
A 24-year-old Russian gay activist who went missing after being attacked and arrested by his own parents is safe, according to Gay Star News. Dmitry Isakov was arrested twice in Kazan in the western Republic of Tatarstan June 29 and 30. After he was arrested, gay activists said Isakov had not been heard from after he had gone to the police station. Isakov later posted on his social-networking site VKontakte that he was free but suffered injuries police administered.
It turns out that more than 15 million LGBT people are banned from same-sex marriage in France, Gay Star News reported. France has signed agreements with several countries saying any expatriates would be banned from marrying under the new "Marriage for All" law. The 10 countries are Algeria, Bosnia & Herzigovina, Cambodia, Laos, Montenegro, Morocco, Poland, Serbia, Slovenia and Tunisia as well as the region of Kosovo.
