Gay ‘prisoner of conscience’ dies in Cameroon

A Cameroonian man who was jailed for sending a text message to another man saying ‘I’m very much in love with you’ and labeled a ‘curse’ by his family has died. Roger Jean-Claude Mbédé, 34, died on Friday (10 January) in Cameroon after his family removed him from hospital where he was seeking treatment for

Al-Qaida kills another Yemeni man suspected of being gay

25-year-old Waleed Saleh Awedan is at least the 35th person murdered by Al-Qaida linked militants on suspicion they are homosexual in Yemen in the last two years. A motorcycle riding gunman has shot dead a 25-year-old Yemeni man on Monday over suspicions he was a homosexual. Waleed Saleh Awedan was shot near his home in

Putin confirms that limited protest zones will be set up at Sochi

Russian authorities have confirmed that special protest zones will be set up at the Sochi Winter Olympics. In the face of heavy criticism of Russia’s anti-gay law, International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach sought to diffuse the situation with an announcement in December. This followed a decree, signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin in August,

New Year’s Eve arson attack on Seattle gay bar Neighbours

Seattle Police are investigating after someone doused a stairwell with gasoline and ignited it in one of the city’s most popular gay nightclubs just after midnight on New Year’s Eve, forcing patrons to evacuate the building. Seattle Police are hunting a suspected arsonist after a fire was lit in one of the city’s most popular

On 12 December 2013, the High Court of Australia issued its judgment in The Commonwealth v Australian Capital Territory, a case relating to the status of the Marriage Equality (Same Sex) Act 2013, a regional law enacted in October 2013 which permitted same-sex marriage in the Australian Capital Territories (ACT). As was expected, the High Court

President Obama sending lesbian sports icon Billie Jean King to Olympics in Sochi

Billie Jean King, recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2009, is part of the delegation that will be representing the US at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. King, 70, is not only one of the world’s most famous athletes, she’s also one of the world’s most famous lesbians and a tireless advocate

Straight from the heart: ‘Gay for a Day’ campaign goes viral

MUMBAI: Celebrity hairstylist Sapna Bhavnani was ill at ease the whole of Wednesday after the SC judgement re-criminalising homosexuality. “As a woman in India today, you have to face so much injustice. This verdict was the last straw,” says Bhavnani, part of what she calls the Aam Aurat Party. Late night, she decided she had to fight

Thursday, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) explained that under EU law, an employee who is in a same-sex civil partnership should receive the same benefits as foreseen for married employees—in case a civil partnership is the highest form of union they can access. A French man entering a registered partnership took his employer

Minsk Gay Pride 2013. Currently not rainbow

In Minsk on December 6  started Minsk Gay Pride 2013, however, instead of rainbow news, information about events related to the Gay Pride is more like police reports. Gay Pride organizers have faced problems in the first stage of activities. Institutions in which  planned Pride activities, one after another began to refuse to provide their

A poll, commissioned by the Office of Equal Opportunities Ombudsman, reveals discriminatory attitudes towards different social groups in Lithuania, including discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, Lithuanian Gay League has reported. About one-fourth of the respondents (22 per cent) indicated that they personally know a homosexual person, and 52 per cent think that homosexual

Europe must react to escalation of human rights violations in Lithuania

On 26 November 2013, Seimas (Lithuanian Parliament) voted to proceed with a consideration of an amendment to the country’s Code of Administrative Offences which aims to limit freedom of association, assembly and expression of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and intersex (LGBTI) people. Seimas members voted to consider this amendment despite the fact that the parliamentary Human Rights Committee suggested

Croatia: 65% of voters approve same-sex marriage ban

The referendum to forbid marriage equality in Croatiahas won an overwhelming majority. The state’s electoral commission, citing close to complete numbers, noted that 65% of voters voted ‘yes’ on the following ballot question: ‘Do you agree that marriage is matrimony between a man and a woman?’ According to an ABC News report, 34% voted ‘no.’ The results