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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 1, 1992)
Just ou t ▼ o cto b o r 1 9 0 2 ▼ 9 Howie Baggadonutz presents shows to make the OCA cringe! HIV-positive Burmese women in Thailand seek safe return home On June 9, 1992, approximately 45 Burmese women were seized from brothels in Ranong province in Thailand and transferred to various detention-centers in Bangkok, where their fate is being negotiated between Thai authorities and Burmese embassy staff. Some of the women, including three who were between the ages of 14 and 21, were found to be HIV positive. Interviews with the young women revealed that the girls had been lured from their border villages by Thai nationals and were then forced to live and work as prostitutes in prisonlike conditions within Thai land. Severe human rights violations have been reported, including rapes, tortures, beatings and food deprivation. Many of the women indicated that they wished to return to their villages and be reunited with their families but fear for their lives at the hands of the Burmese military regime. In April, it was reported that 25 HTV-positive women repatriated from Thailand were injected with cyanide by members of the internationally despised State Law and Order Restoration Council, the military regime that currently holds state power in Burma. A variety of reliable sources from within Thai land and Burma have suggested that this atrocity was not an isolated incident. Public attention to the April atrocities led Thai authorities to declare that they would not repatri ate any more HIV-positive Burmese citizens. However, the Bangkok Post reported on July 31, 1992, that the Burmese ambassador to Thailand met with Thailand’s Prime Minister’s Office of ficials to discuss the return home of the Burmese women. According to the article, Minister S aisuree Chutikul told the press that the Burmese women will be sent home to Burma and that the Burmese government will look after their safety. “Given the recent cyanide injections and the deplorable rights record of the SLORC in general, it is simply not enough to trust in the 'assurances' of this notorious military regime,” responded Donna Rae Palmer, Asia regional coordinator of the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission. “The Thai government should not repatriate any HIV-positive individuals without reasonable and responsible assurances that moni toring by international observers is absolutely ensured.” An Aug. 10, 1992, statement released to Asia Watch further attests to the precarious situation of Burmese women in the brothels of Ranong. Inter views revealed that some Burmese women “who were assumed to have AIDS” were removed from the area and have since “disappeared.” They quoted as well a Thai government research report from December 1991 that found that nearly 50 percent of 200 women from Ranong brothels tested positive for HIV. Almost 75 percent of these women were Burmese nationals. Finally, they noted that as economic conditions in Burma continue to deteriorate at the hands of the SLORC, increasing numbers of Burmese women and chil dren are finding themselves in this dire situation. Julie Dorf, International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission TELL THEM At A t “The Lesbian USO” Returns! CARO L STEIN EL SUNNY McHALE SKYEDANCER Fri., Oct. 30 • 8pm MCC, NE 24th & Broadway $8.50 advance; $10 door BEFORE THEY VOTE Portland's Coming Out Day October 9, 1992 5-8 PM From Seattle Authorized by No On Hate Portland Metro PAC, Box 2725, Portland, OR 97208, 503-222-9885; ID 00918 DOS FALLO P IA kam ikaze com edy & music from a w om an’s point o f view HAL JONES AUTOMOTIVE Sat., Nov. 7 • 8pm Echo Theatre, 1515 SE 37th .50 advance; $10 door JOY ENTERPRISES Ron Joy Vote no on discrimination. Vote no on 9. 5111 NE Fremont Portland, OR 97213 796-1703 288-1130 VOTE NO ON 9 From San Francisco Transsexual Lesbian High Level Performance KATE BORNSTEIN in In today's hot market, you need a Realtor who is experienced, efficient, and quick. Whether buying or selling — 1 promise to put on my running shoes for you. “The Opposite Sex is Neither a provocative exploration o f gender PORTLAND HOMOPHOeiC VIOLENCE DOCUMENTATION PROJECT REPORT THE VIOLENCE. GET SUPPORT. Pioneer Square Advance outlets (tix subject to service charge): Tred Meyer Tastixx (224-8499), Ladd’s Editions Books Scott ScottBottaro9(503)234 18879(503)287 9370 B n d Q e tO W T I R e a l t y