PUB BOMBER GUILTY OF
MURDER
The Nazi sympathizer who bombed London's Admiral Duncan gay pub in April 1999 received six life prison sentences June 30.
The attack by David Copeland, 24, killed three people and injured 86.
In sentencing Copeland, Judge Michael Hyam said: "Anyone who has heard the facts of this case will be appalled and horrified at the atrocity of your crimes. ... The public must be protected from you and assured that if you are ever released it will not be for a very long time."
Copeland received one life sentence for each murder, one for the bombing itself, and one each for two other bombings that targeted Blacks and Bangladeshis.
He told the court: "I believe in what I believed in and I took that belief to the extreme. If no one remembers who you were, then you never existed. My aim was political. It was to cause a racial war in this country."
AZERBAIJAN
LEGALIZES GAY SEX
The former Soviet republic of Azerbaijan passed legislation in late May legalizing gay-male sex. It will take effect in September. Lesbian sex was never banned.
Male anal sex was prohibited by Criminal Code Article 113, which was left over from Soviet times. A new statute bans only forced sex.
Along with other changes to its criminal code, Azerbaijan legalized gays in hopes of being accepted into the 41-nation Council of Europe, which requires that member nations not prohibit homosexuality.
In the whole of Europe only the former Soviet republic of Armenia, the Bosnian Serb Republika Srpska and Russia's Chechen Republic still ban gay sex outright, according to the International Lesbian & Gay Association.
The Council of Europe was founded following World War II and works to strengthen democracy, human rights and the rule of law in member states. The European Convention on Human Rights is the most important of its many human-rights treaties. Violations of the convention are settled by the European Court of Human Rights. The Council is governed by the foreign ministers of its member states ( the Committee of Ministers ) and by representatives from national parliaments ( the Parliamentary Assembly ) . For more information, visit www.coe.fr.
GAY YOUTH CENTER OPENS IN FRANCE
French Youth and Sports Minister Marie-George Buffet opened Paris' first gay youth center June 26.
The center hopes to create a friendly atmosphere that will allow GLBT youth "to break their isolation they may be facing," a spokesman said.
"We provide them with a place for discussion, free speech and exchange of experiences during our various leisure activities," he said.
Funding came, in part, from the European Union, France's Youth and Sports Ministry, and the Ile-de-France Regional Council.
The opening ceremonies were attended by several politicians.
GAY GROUP FORMS
IN LEBANON
Lebanon's first gay group has formed after Lebanese gay men found each other on the Internet.
Club Free leader "Mazen" told Philadelphia Gay News, "Surfing the Net has allowed us to witness a growing openness of the gay community, and now we in Lebanon wish not only to witness but participate."
The organization's 30 members are Christian, Sunni Muslim, Shiite Muslim, Jewish and Palestinian.
ILGA TO MEET IN
HOMOPHOBIC
ROMANIA
The 22nd European regional conference of the International Lesbian & Gay Association will be in homophobic Romania this year from Oct. 4 to 8.
"Homosexuality is still incriminated [ sic ] by Article 200 from the Penal Code," said organizer Adrian Coman of the Bucharest gay group Accept. " [ The conference ] will add needed moral support to the Romanian lesbian and gay community that is still facing not only discrimination by law but also homophobia and sometimes institutionalized propaganda."
The conference will coincide with the presidential campaign and with Romania's ongoing efforts to bring its human-rights standards in line with requirements for membership in the European Union.
On June 28, the lower house of parliament, the Chamber of Deputies, voted to legalize gay sex except when "performed in public." The measure has not been considered by the Senate.
Current law states: "Same-sex relations taking place in public or resulting in a public scandal shall be punished by one to five years imprisonment. Enticing or seducing a person to practice same-sex relations as well as propaganda, association or other forms of proselytizing with the same aim shall be punished by one to five years imprisonment."
To register for the ILGA meeting, write Accept, P.O. Box 34-56, Bucharest, Romania; phone 011-40-1-252-1637; fax 011-40-1-252- 5620; e-mail accept@fx.ro or visit their website
accept.ong.ro/Conference2000.html .
The European Union is composed of 15 western European nations working toward unification. It was formed in 1956. EU law is made by the Council of Ministers which receives instructions from the European Council which is composed of the heads of state of EU member nations. The EU's supreme court is the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg.
GUATEMALA SEES FIRST PRIDE MARCH
Between 100 and 350 people staged Guatemala's first gay-pride march June 25. Media reports and organizers disagreed on the attendance figure.
According to Reuters, the marchers visited four locations in Guatemala City where transvestites were killed last year in apparent hate crimes.
"Don't be afraid, tell them with pride you're gay," marcher Luis said to his partner, Briza, who was trying to hide from news photographers.
750,000 ATTEND TORONTO PRIDE
A whopping 750,000 people attended Toronto's 20th Pride Parade June 25, said the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
Mayor Mel Lastman, who was soaked by super-charged squirt guns in his last two appearances, fired back this year from his perch atop an antique fire truck, the Toronto Star reported.
"This year, I've got a pump [ fire extinguisher ] here and I'm going after those guys," Lastman said.
Fifty protesters staged a Straight Pride Stride event in nearby Queen's Park.
100,000 AT
LONDON PRIDE
Around 100,000 people crowded central London July 1 for the Mardi Gras 2000 Gay and Lesbian Pride March and Parade from Hyde Park to Piccadilly Circus.
A post-parade festival and concert in Finsbury Park featured Boy George & Culture Club, Bananarama, Dana International and Australian pop diva Kylie Minogue.
"Mardi Gras offers a chance to celebrate diversity and to remember the struggle of all minority communities against prejudice," Prime Minister Tony Blair wrote to organizers.
London Mayor Ken Livingstone told concert-goers he intends to create a city registry and ceremony for gay couples.
"I want a civil ceremony where gay couples can demonstrate their commitment," he said. "Slowly the world will change and hopefully it's moving in the right direction."
The Metropolitan Police staffed a recruitment stall at the festival. A spokesman said: "We are looking for a police force that represents the diversity of London. ... We have got a long way to go but we have got to make people understand that we are sincere about what we are going for."
GAYS ARE NO
PROBLEM IN
ISRAELI MILITARY
Letting gays serve in the Israeli military hasn't hurt a thing, according to a new study by the Center for the Study of Sexual Minorities in the Military at the University of California at Santa Barbara.
"In [ the U.S. ] , the military ban is based on the idea that gays undermine performance and cohesion," said co-author Aaron Belkin. "The experience of foreign militaries shows that there is no evidence for this position."
Israel dropped its ban in 1993. The U.S. and Turkey are the only members of NATO who continue to ban gays from their armed forces.
CAFE DE-GAYS
ITSELF
Actors' Cafe, the gayest establishment in Bucharest, Romania, turned straight June 14, says activist Bogdan Honciuc of the gay group Accept.
"The management denies gays access either to the bar or terrace," Honciuc said. "Sources within the staff of the cafe claim that several persons have been hired to spot the gays during the last few weeks."