Ireland To Fight Lesbian Couple Married In Canada

(Dublin) The Irish government has announced it will fight a suit brought by a lesbian couple married in Canada who want to have their marriage recognized. More »

Nepal Police Attack, Beat Transsexuals

(Geneva) Police in Kathmandu attacked a group of transgender people on Wednesday, underscoring the vulnerability of all Nepalese to police abuse since King Gyanendra seized direct power in February and suspended most civil liberties, Human Rights Watch said Monday. More »

Hong Kong Police Raid Gay Fashion Show

(Hong Kong) A fashion show organized by a gay businessman was shut down Monday when 10 members of Hong Kong's Police Tactical Unit burst in and began searching members of the audience. More »

Australia Lodges Protest Over Gay Tourist's Arrest In Fiji

(Canberra) The Australian government Friday filed an official protest with the Fijian government over the arrest and conviction of an Australian tourist on gay sex charges. More »

U.S. Joint Chiefs Head Backs Military's Gay Ban

(Washington) Air Force Gen. Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Friday said he opposes any move in Congress to repeal "don't ask, don't tell", the policy that bars gays to serve openly in the military. More »

AFRICA: New thinking needed to counter AIDS in rural communities

(Durban) The link between HIV/AIDS and hunger in rural communities has received a great deal of attention over the past few years - particularly in Southern Africa, where HIV/AIDS has added a new dimension to the recent food crisis. More »

Australian State Rejects Gay Marriage Bid

(Hobart, Australia) The Tasmanian government has rejected a move by the Greens Party to introduce a bill to legalize same-sex marriage in the state. More »

Fiji Prime Minister Tells Foreign Gays To Mind Own Business

(Suva) Fiji's Prime Minister, Laisenia Qarase, says foreign gays and international human rights groups should keep noses out of the country's affairs. More »

Drug Makers Distance Themselves From Anti-Gay Ads

(Washington) The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), an umbrella group representing the biggest pharmaceutical companies in the country have distanced themselves from an ad that slams the ARP over Social Security by attempting to link the AARP to same-sex marriage. More »

Episcopal Church Continues Gay Retreat

(New York City) Leaders of the Episcopal Church decided Wednesday to withdraw delegates from an upcoming conference of the international Anglican Communion, a move that heads of other Anglican churches had requested because of a running dispute over homosexuality. More »

AFRICA: WHO conference focuses on nutrition and HIV/AIDS

(Johannesburg) As the global drive to provide anti-AIDS drugs to Africa's HIV-positive citizens gains momentum, antiretrovirals (ARVs) are now taking centre stage, overshadowing all other treatment efforts. More »

Fiji Grants Bail To Gay Sex Pair

(Suva) An Australian tourist and a Fijian sentenced to two years in prison for having gay sex have been released on bail. More »

Bid To Kill Canada's Gay Marriage Bill Defeated

(Ottawa) The Canadian Liberal government's same-sex marriage bill survived a move by the opposition Conservatives to derail the measure late Tuesday. More »

Australian Gov't Urged To Intervene In Gay Tourist's Arrest In Fiji

(Sydney, Australia) LGBT civil rights advocates demonstrated in front of the Fijian consulate in Sydney today protesting the jailing of a gay Australia tourist in Fiji. More »

Next Pope Unlikely To Change Church's Gay Stance

(New York City) The majority of America's Roman Catholics tell pollsters they want a greater voice for the laity in the church, that priests should be allowed to marry and that there should be women in the clergy. More »

Study: Homophobic Bullying Begins At Early Age

(London) A study into bullying in British schools has found that boys as young as nine frequently use anti-gay bullying "to establish their masculinity". More »

Australia Gay Marriage Ban may have Loophole

(Sydney, Australia) Australia's ban on same-sex marriage has a loophole large enough to drive a truck through according to a constitutional law expert. More »

SOUTH AFRICA: Voices of mothers on preventing HIV transmission go

(Johannesburg) It's been three years since the courts ordered the South African government to provide nevirapine to HIV-positive pregnant women in public health facilities, but very little is known about the experiences of the HIV-positive women on the programme. More »

Protests, Counter Protests As Same-Sex Marriage Bill Heads To Crucial Vote

(Ottawa) Supporters and opponents of same-sex marriage geared up over the weekend for a crucial vote this week on legislation to extend gay marriage across Canada. More »

Gay Marriage Protest At Royal Wedding

(Windsor, England) Prince Charles and his longtime mistress Camilla Parker Bowles were married Saturday at Windsor's 17th century Guildhall - and it did not go unnoticed by Britain's most outspoken gay activist. More »

Canadian Court Rules Schools Responsible For Combating Homophobia

(Vancouver, British Columbia) British Columbia's highest court has overturned a lower court ruling that said a student could not sue a school board for homophobic bullying and harassment because he is straight. More »

Saudi Arabia Sentences More Than 100 To Prison and Flogging For 'Gay Conduct'

(Geneva) In sentencing more than 100 men to imprisonment and flogging after unfair trials for alleged "homosexual conduct", Saudi Arabia has advertised its contempt for the basic rights to privacy, fair trials and freedom from torture two human rights groups said Thursday. More »

NYC To Recognize Gay Marriages

(New York City) New York City will recognize same-sex marriages and civil unions - but only if they were performed outside the state in areas where they are already legal. More »

Indians More Susceptible To AIDS Than Westerners

(New Delhi) Scientists say that Indians infected with HIV are more likely to develop AIDS faster than people in the West. More »

Fiji Imprisons Tourist For Having Gay Sex

(Suva) A retired Australian university lecturer was sentenced to two years in prison for having gay sex with a local man in Fiji where such acts are outlawed, a newspaper reported Wednesday. More »

SOUTH AFRICA: Shared breastfeeding and poor medical hygiene fuels HIV/AIDS

(Johannesburg) New research by South Africa's Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) suggests that negligent breastfeeding at public hospitals in the Free State province is placing infants at risk of HIV infection. More »

Swazi Gays Get First Same-sex Club in Kingdom

How many gays are there in Swaziland? At least 11, judging by the first anonymous men who signed up to join the kingdom's first same-sex adult club. More »

Gay Catholics & Others Call For More Liberal Pope

(New York City) Whether they want recognition of gays, women priests, more say for the laity or a return to the Latin mass, Roman Catholic interest groups are sending their varied messages to Rome - attempting to exert some small influence on the selection of the next pope or at least get more attention for their causes. More »

Navratilova Gay Credit Card Battle Heats Up

(New York City) A gay credit card company being sued by lesbian tennis great Martina Navratilova has filed a counterclaim accusing her of making false accusations in an attempt to "destroy" the company. More »

Blair Calls UK Election

(London) British voters will go to the polls May 5. Prime Minister Tony Blair asked the Queen Tuesday to dissolve Parliament. More »

Human Rights Complaint Against Gay Guesthouse For Refusing Lesbians, Straights

(Cape Town, South Africa) An investigation has begun into the operator of two gay guesthouses who allegedly refused to rent rooms to lesbians and heterosexuals. The complaint was lodged by the Gay and Lesbian Alliance, a conservative group denounced by mainstream South African LGBTI organisations as long ago as 2002. More »

Gay Divorce Rate In Netherlands Comparable To Those Of Heterosexuals

(Amsterdam, Netherlands) Gay Dutch couples appear to divorce at a rate of about one percent a year - the same rate as heterosexual married couples, according to government data released Monday. More »

Will Next Pope Be More Gay Friendly?

(Vatican City) A devout Catholics mourn the death of Pope John Paul II, the princes of the Church are sizing up one another as they prepare to elect the next leader of the faith. More »

British Labor Targets Gays With Beer

(London) Britain is gearing up for a general election and Labor has found a novel way to get its message out to gays. More »