CNA: Singapore won’t repeal homosexual law

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By Hoe Yeen Nie, Channel NewsAsia

Posted: 05 July 2009 2015 hrs

SINGAPORE: Law Minister K Shanmugam has said Singapore will not decriminalise gay sex but the courts have the power to decide how the law, Section 377, is applied. Section 377A of the Penal Code deems sex between men a crime.

A recent ruling by the New Delhi High Court legalising gay sex between consenting adults in India raised questions on whether Singapore might go the same way. Both countries share the same Penal Code, inherited from the colonial British.

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.

TOC: A thousand gather to celebrate diversity and the freedom to love

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Sunday, 17 May 2009, 12:22 pm

Videographer: Mervin Lee / Interviewers: Teng Jing Wei and Vicky Yang

Koh Yina / Tng Ying Hui

The overcast sky did not hamper the exuberance of the crowd at Hong Lim Park yesterday. They were gathered for one purpose – in support of Pinkdot.sg.

Pinkdot.sg is about supporting the freedom of the LGBT in Singapore to love. This historical moment aims to promote an inclusive society for all, regardless of sexual orientation.  Many were dressed in pink, regardless whether they were homosexuals or not and they were there to express themselves freely about the right to love.

PinkNews: Fired gay soldier to fight dismissal ‘tooth and nail’

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By Jessica Geen

May 8, 2009

Dan Choi, the US Army lieutenant who was fired after revealing he was gay, has said he will fight his dismissal “tooth and nail”.

Choi, a West Point graduate and Arabic linguist, came out live on the Rachel Maddow show in March, knowing it could cost him his job.

This week, he received a letter dismissing him for “homosexual conduct”.

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.

SGChristianPost: Understanding the Homosexual Agenda

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Tuesday, Sep. 23, 2008

According to a news article, a gay (homosexual) pride parade is scheduled to take place on 15 November 2008 at Hong Lim Park, which the Government has earmarked for demonstrations. The organiser suggested parading the grounds with placards of “Repeal 377A” on one side and “legalise gay marriage” on the other side.

This seems to be the first time that a homosexual activist has come out in the open to call not only for the repeal of 377A, but also to legalise same-sex marriage. The proponents for the retention of 377A have always said that the real issue is not the decriminalisation of sodomy but whether Singaporeans would be willing to adopt the homosexual agenda. With this “outing” of the homosexual agenda, the homosexual activists can no longer call for decriminalisation without dealing with the ramifications of the homosexual agenda of which decriminalization is the first step. For years, there has been a refusal among homosexual activists in Singapore to talk about the consequences of decriminalisation of sodomy because of the adverse impact it would have to their cause.

Intolerance and the Christian Right

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by Bishop John Shelby Spong

I am writing this short essay with some regret. I deeply believe in Christ’s dictum “for whoever is not against us is for us” (Mark 9-40). However I have found more intolerance in the beliefs of the Christian “radical right” than I care to stomach and I feel I must speak out. When, in this context, I use the word “Christian,” I am referring to those generally referred to as the Christian right- by no means all or a majority of Christians.

In my opinion, Christians on the right are fully entitled to their views on abortion, the Supreme Court, “objectionable” books, school/corporate prayer, family life, no-fault divorce, homosexuality, women’s rights, evangelicalism, the right to bear arms, sex education, the interpretation of the Bible, etc. However their beliefs often are the fruition of a philosophy of living and way of thinking that I abhor. These Christians have an unthinking, blind faith in THEIR interpretation of the Bible. They readily condemn other sects, religions and beliefs but make no or little effort to understand the beliefs they so easily condemn. Many proclaim themselves “saved” by virtue of accepting Christ as their savior, but do not see the need to serve their fellow man and truly give of themselves. To the contrary, some practice violence and show overt and covert hatred to those that appear to be “on the other side” of issues they deeply believe in. They would readily deny the “opposition” their political and economic rights, not realizing that this very denial threatens all, including their own, right to dissent.

New Hampshire Senate passes gay-marriage bill

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By Andrew J. Manuse

CONCORD, New Hampshire (Reuters) – New Hampshire’s Senate passed a bill on Wednesday that would legalize same-sex marriage after an amendment was added that allows clergy to decline to marry gay couples.

The bill, which passed in a 13-11 vote, needs to be signed by Governor John Lynch to make New Hampshire the fifth U.S. state where gay marriage is legal. The Democrat has not indicated whether he will sign or veto the bill, but has expressed opposition to the measure.

The bill passed the state’s House of Representatives on March 26 but looked set for near certain defeat in the Senate before the amendment, which appeared to mollify some critics in the Democratic-controlled chamber.