BY NOREEN FAGAN - Although I know a fair number of queers who got up at 4am in the morning to watch the royal wedding, I also know a lot who didn’t, and who don’t really want to hear any more about the royal antics across the pond.

For the past months, ever since the engagement was announced, the public has been inundated with reports on the couple – his lineage and her lack of it, the story of her engagement ring or his decision not to wear a wedding ring, her dress vs his military uniform, the wedding guests, rehearsals and… well, the list goes on and on.

There have been some fun moments building up to the big day, like the T-Mobile instant advertising video that has gone viral. 

But there have also been some sullied moments concerning the guest list.

The greatest snub was to Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, who were pointedly left off the list. Instead, representatives from countries not known for their human rights records were invited: Zimbabwe's ambassador to Britain; King Mswati III of Swaziland, who Amnesty International has criticized for using security forces to quell peaceful demonstrations; Prince Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifa of Bahrain, whose regime has killed dozens of peaceful anti-government protestors — he respectfully declined under pressure; Saudi Arabia’s Prince Mohamed bin Nawaf bin Abdulaziz; and representatives of North Korea and Iran.

There were also protests against the wedding. In Britain, gay activist Peter Tatchell arranged a rally outside Buckingham Palace that was peaceful, well attended and straightforward in its message —  that same-sex couples still cannot get married in the UK.

 

BY NOREEN FAGAN - As Bill C-389  — the trans bill that would add gender identity and gender expression to the Canadian Human Rights Act and the Criminal Code — lingers in the Senate, it is interesting to read what is happening in other parts of the world.

Take India for example. It is not known as a country that promotes sexual minorities' rights; in fact, it has a long history of discriminating against trans people.

 

However, in the past few months there have been some interesting developments.

For the first time trans people will be included in the census. Until now, trans people were referred to as “unknowns” or “faceless people.” In the 2011 census they will be included in the "others" category: "transgenders would be given a separate code, ie '3' in the names of others, the '1' and '2' being meant for male and female respectively during the ensuing Census 2011."

From a Canadian perspective, being referred to as "others" may not be the recognition we would like to see, but for many trans people in India it is progress.

“This is a leap forward for us. Till now we were unknown people… now, we will have some status in our own country,” says Laxmi Narayan Tripathi, a transgender activist in India.

In the neighbouring country of Pakistan, the government has also made some tiny changes.

The latest report is that trans people will be allowed to choose an alternative sex, other than male or female, on all government identity documents. They are small steps, and somewhat strange ones, but at least they are there. Now all that Canada has to do is to show the rest of the world what we are capable of. Hopefully, in the next parliamentary session, Bill C-389 can surge past the Senate roadblock and be approved.

 

BY NOREEN FAGAN: After a five-year struggle, activists in Moscow have received permission to organize a gay pride parade on May 28. Nikolai Alexeyev, Russia’s most prominent gay rights activist is, naturally, enthusiastic about the decision. Alexeyev’s relationship with Russian authorities has, in the past, been tenuous and fraught with fear and intimidation.

Russian authorities detained Alexeyev in September 2010. He was kept in “custody” and told to withdraw his complaints against the Russian Federation at the European Court of Human Rights regarding ongoing violations of the right to free assembly for queer people in Russia.

Alexeyev was freed three days later. He did not withdraw his complaint and instead of seeking asylum in Belarus (as was the buzz) he returned home to Russia.

The latest turnaround in the Russian authorities' decision to allow gay pride is cause for celebration, but it doesn’t come without some concessions and there is still doubt about whether it will actually happen.

The parade will be advertised as an educational event called Gay Pride: Homosexuality in the History of World Culture and Civilization. The number of participants has been capped at 500 — and the kicker in all this is that Moscow’s mayor has not yet granted permission. On Tuesday April 26, Alexeyeve stated that it was the city council who had approved the parade, but without the Mayor's go ahead that seems unlikely.

In the latest report, deputy mayor Lyudmila Shvetsova said she has not yet given permission for a gay pride parade in Moscow.

"Their [the gay pride parade organizers'] appeal has been addressed to me. Work is being done in line with a procedure existing in the Moscow city administration. We are studying these proposals, and they will receive an answer within due time," she said.

Earlier attempts to stage gay rallies in Moscow have been brutally suppressed — Moscow's former mayor Yury Luzhkov referred to homosexuality as "satanic." President Dmitry Medvedev fired Yury Luzhkov in September 2010 ending the mayor's 18-year old rule over Moscow.

  

BY NOREEN FAGAN - Like a growing number of countries in Africa, Malawi does not have a great track record with queer rights.

In 2009, Steven Monjeza and Tiwonge Chimbalanga made international news when they became the first same-sex couple to seek marriage in Malawi. Authorities caught wind of the engagement and promptly arrested the couple.

They were convicted of “unnatural offences and indecent practices between males” and sentenced to 14 years in prison. After international protests, the two were released in 2010. Soon after their release Monjeza bailed out of the relationship, saying that he wanted a normal life and not one where “I would be watched by everyone, booed and teased."

Chimbalanga remains in Malawi, uncertain of his future and living under a homophobic government.

The latest development is that two non-governmental organizations that support queer rights, the Human Rights Consultative Committee and the Centre for the Development of People (CEDEP), have been blamed for the withdrawal of foreign aid to Malawi by donor countries.

For CEDEP, the latest attack is just another one to add to a growing list.

Last year the CEDEP offices were raided and pornographic films were supposedly discovered. According to the police spokesperson, the discovery led to the police launching a “hunt for prominent gays” — a phrase that made international headlines.

Gift Trapence, the director of CEDEP, says the frequent attacks have hindered CEDEP's HIV prevention efforts. Trapence says that gay people have been driven underground and cannot access testing because they're afraid of the police.

The Malawi government’s “outing” of organizations and people who support queer rights echoes the sentiment in Uganda and Cameroon.

David Kato, a Ugandan gay rights activist was killed early this year. He was a leader in challenging the proposed government anti-homosexuality bill, which called for the death sentence for some homosexual acts.

News of his murder reverberated around the world and was even brought up in the House of Commons. Bill Siksay, retiring NDP MP, brought up the question of how Canada would respond to the murder.

Unfortunately for Siksay, the government’s response was tepid.

“It would be nice to see them do something tangible about it. I’d like to see them bring in the high commissioner and say they’re concerned. I’d like to see the prime minister call the president again. I’d like to see our diplomats do something tangible, as American and other diplomats have done in Kampala,” said Siskay.

But months have passed and nothing has happened. Discrimination and violence still continue in countries like Uganda and Malawai. Gays and lesbians are forced into hiding as governments become increasingly homophobic with each passing day.

 

 

   

BY NOREEN FAGAN - Too much testosterone, women, and you are out of the game. That’s the news from the International Olympic Committee and the International Association of Athletics Federations.

The sports-governing gurus approved a new policy that deals with athletes whose sex development is unusual. The new rules and regulations help determine the eligibility of females with hyperandrogenism to take part in women’s competition.

Hyperandrogenism is the overproduction of male sex hormones, and it is what got South African runner Caster Semenya into trouble at the 2009 World Championships.

Semenya won the gold medal for the 800 metres, but because she looked too manly, questions were raised about whether her physical condition gave her an unfair advantage. She was forced to withdraw from international competition, undergoing gender testing and public humiliation until she was given the go-ahead to return to competition in July 2010.

The new policy is supposed to bypass the embarrassing faux pas made by the sports governing bodies in their dealings with Semenya, but an essay in The New York Times describes the policy as “sexist in its philosophy.”

Semenya is back in the game, and on April 10 she won the 800 metres in the South African National Championships.

Go girl.