In memoriam: Anthony Yeo (1949-2009)

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22 Jul 2009

by C. S. Zhou

A memorial service will be held this Friday, Jul 24, to celebrate the life of Anthony Yeo, and to honour his contributions and support of the GLBTQ community. C. S. Zhou of the Free Community Church recalls his first meeting with the counsellor at a symposium to address homosexuality and the church a decade ago.

Widely regarded as Singapore’s “Father of Counselling”, Anthony Yeo, 60, passed away on Jun 20 from complications as a result of his leukaemia, leaving behind his brother, wife and two children. He was the founder and clinical director of Counselling and Care Centre. He had numerous letters published in the press on social issues including calling for more understanding and acceptance of lesbians and gays in society. The following tribute is contributed by C. S. Zhou of the Free Community Church.

Homophobia is not just another point of view

It has been a couple of weeks since the Thio-NYU incident and I think I’ve finally figured out why it has been bothering me so much. It’s not as if homophobia and other forms of intolerance don’t already irk me enough, but for some reason, just something about Dr Thio Li-ann’s cool response to the reactions of the law school’s LBGT organization to her anti gay stance, including an open letter from NYU student Jim McCurley (reproduced here), gave me a fortnight-long sense of unease.

It wasn’t the fact that Dr Thio’s response seemed so calm and almost reasonable, so unlike her crass and tactless description of anal sex as “shoving a straw up your nose to drink” while arguing against the decriminalization of gay sex in Singapore. I did not assume for one second that she would present herself as anything less than professional in her capacity as a Professor, and especially to a more liberal audience such as NYU. It wasn’t even the irony that her course is about “Human Rights in Asia”, a topic that many have questioned about whether she is qualified to teach, given her failure to recognize the rights of homosexuals.

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TheSun: I was a lipstick lesbian… now I’m a gay man

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By SHARON HENDRY

21 May 2009

WITH her sexy curves, perfect pout and long, blonde hair, gorgeous Katherine Dalton was in big demand as a model.

But beneath her beauty lay a secret which had troubled her from an early age — she felt she was a MAN and found herself attracted to girls rather than guys.

The 31-year-old says: “For years I was a man trapped in a woman’s body. And although I was a beautiful woman I felt ugly because I was not who I wanted to be. Now I feel complete and it is fantastic.

“Going through the op to be a man was scary but it’s the most fulfilling thing I’ve done and I feel right for the first time in my life.”

BBCNews: Singapore gays in first public rally

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Sharanjit Leyl

BBC News, Singapore

Participants of the pinkdot rally in Singapore. Photo: 16 May 2009

Many participants described the rally as “a landmark event”

Halfway across the world, as police moved in to break up a gay rights protest in Russia, another country known for being equally as restrictive on liberal ideals was holding its first gay rally undisturbed.

Some 2,500 pink-attired supporters of gay rights gathered in a park in Singapore on Saturday, to form a pink dot, which was photographed from a nearby building.

TimesAsia: Boys Night Out

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2001

By JEN WEI TING Singapore

We’re here. We’re queer. Get used to it. Can Singapore accept its gay community?

Anything goes at Taboo. As your eyes get used to the dim blue lighting, you catch silhouettes of couples kissing, touching, and necking openly, both on and off the dance floor. The first surprise is that almost all the patrons are male. Surprise No. 2—are you sitting down?—is that this is in Singapore.

Yes, that most uptight of Asian countries has a surprisingly lively gay scene. Taboo is one of three nightclubs in the Tanjong Pagar suburb that has a large homosexual clientele. At the two 24-hour coffee shops, it’s not unusual to see flamboyantly attired drag queens enjoying a late night snack. By day, the cafE at the Borders bookstore downtown is a popular gay hangout. Those who prefer to stay in the closet can find refuge in numerous websites and Internet chat groups run by local gay activists. “Singapore is probably the safest place to live in Asia now”, says Shen, a gay playwright.

Homosexuality is Not Immoral

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By Peter Singer, 2006

In recent years, the Netherlands, Belgium, Canada, and Spain have recognized marriages between people of the same sex. Several other countries recognize civil unions with similar legal effect. An even wider range of countries have laws against discrimination on the basis of a person’s sexual orientation, in areas like housing and employment. Yet in the world’s largest democracy, India, sex between two men remains a crime punishable, according to statute, by imprisonment for life.

India is not, of course, the only nation to retain severe punishments for homosexuality. In some Islamic nations – Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Yemen, for instance – sodomy is a crime for which the maximum penalty is death. But the retention of such laws is easier to understand in the case of countries that incorporate religious teachings into their criminal law – no matter how much others may regret it – than in a secular democracy like India.

ST: Mothers, talk to your kids about the birds and the bees

By Radha Basu, Senior Correspondent

The Sunday Times

May 10, 2009

Carl Joseph Walker-Hoover was every parent’s dream. A Boy Scout, he scored good grades at school, loved football and helped out at the local church.

Yet, after dinner on April 6, the Massachusetts boy wrapped an extension cord around his neck and killed himself. He was 11.

Ten days later, on April 16, Jaheem Herrera from Georgia hanged himself with a fabric belt, hours after returning home with glowing grades. He too was 11.

Both families say that relentless taunts by schoolmates who called them ‘gay’ drove the boys to their deaths. The schools have not denied their allegations.

TheWayangParty: LEAKED: Appeal to Prime Minister on values of marriage and family

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6 May 2009

From The Informant Network Team:

Here’s another email forwarded to Prime Minister Lee, a few PAP MPs and many other people to manipulate public perception against the CSE.

The segment on homosexuality takes up only 5 minutes of the 3 hour CSE which is taught only to 11 schools in Singapore.

It is most ridiculous to accuse it as part of a homosexual plot to undermine the institution of marriage in Singapore.

ST: Aware sex guide suspended

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May 6, 2009

THE Ministry of Education (MOE) has suspended the sexuality education programme run by the Association of Women for Action and Research (Aware) in some schools, saying it does not conform to the MOE’s guidelines.

In particular, MOE found some suggested responses in the guide ‘too explicit and inappropriate, and convey messages which could promote homosexuality or suggest approval of pre-marital sex’.

‘In view of the contents of the manual, Aware’s programmes will be suspended in schools and subject to the new vetting processes,’ said the ministry in a letter to The Straits Times Forum section on Wednesday.

The MOE’s decision came barely a week after it said it was investigating the Aware programme, following complaints from parents. But two days before that, MOE had said it saw no reason to intervene because it had not received any complaints.

Homosexual Activity Among Animals Stirs Debate

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James Owen in London

for National Geographic News

July 23, 2004

Birds do it, bees do it, even educated fleas do it. So go the lyrics penned by U.S. songwriter Cole Porter.

Porter, who first hit it big in the 1920s, wouldn’t risk parading his homosexuality in public. In his day “the birds and the bees” generally meant only one thing—sex between a male and female.

But, actually, some same-sex birds do do it. So do beetles, sheep, fruit bats, dolphins, and orangutans. Zoologists are discovering that homosexual and bisexual activity is not unknown within the animal kingdom.

Roy and Silo, two male chinstrap penguins at New York’s Central Park Zoo have been inseparable for six years now. They display classic pair-bonding behavior—entwining of necks, mutual preening, flipper flapping, and the rest. They also have sex, while ignoring potential female mates.