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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (May 17, 1996)
ju *t o u t ▼ m ay 1 7 . 1 0 9 6 ▼ 5 world briefs BOLIVIA In one of the first pieces of gay news from Bolivia, local activists reported that they staged a “First National Gathering” and a “Señorita Gay” contest in the city of Santa Cruz de la Sierra. The conference attracted gay men from around the nation “in order to unite a community that has too long lived under the threat of violence and physical harassment, along with other health and survival risks such as AIDS and [sexually trans m itted diseases],” said spokesm an Oscar Paniagua. The gathering was organized by Unidos en la Lucha por la Dignidad y la Salud (United in the Fight for Dignity and Health), which has about 70 members. CANADA The International Conference on AIDS, to be held July 7-12 in Vancouver, B.C., will offer optimism about staying healthy with HIV, im proved management of infections, and vaccine trials, said Toronto’s Globe and Mail. The report is based on a review by conference organizers of 5,000 scheduled presentations. “[There is] a rich body of evidence that shows we’re beginning to wage a relentless and increas ingly successful rebellion against the pandemic,” the organizers said. Key to the excitement is the dramatic success of two- and three-drug combinations in lowering patients’ viral load. Combinations such as AZT, 3TC and one of the new protease inhibitors, or d4T, ddl and a protease inhibitor, have shown particular prom ise. CYPRUS A Holy Synod of Cyprus’ Greek Orthodox Church on April 4dropped charges of homosexu ality against a popular priest who had been elected by the faithful as bishop of the Morphou diocese. But Archimandrite Pangratios Meraclis, who has been suspended since February, still will be prohibited from taking the bishop’s ....... . chair, at least for now, the synod ruled. M eraclis, 39, was charged with “introducing a stu- i^dent to homosexu ality,” visiting for eign gay bars, and other infractions. The faithful of his diocese did not believe the allegations and staged large demonstrations in his favor. FRANCE France’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs told Sweden in April that it cannot offer same-sex marriage ceremonies at its embassy in Paris, even though the building is legally Swedish territory. Sweden is one of three countries where lesbi ans and gay men can marry under registered- partnership laws that grant all the rights of regular marriage except access to church weddings, adop tion and artificial-conception services. France based its decision on Article 5 of the Vienna Convention, which permits countries to prohibit certain consular functions at embassies, according to the Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter. Many Swedes travel to Paris in the springtime to get married at the embassy. GERMANY Reported gay-bashings rose substantially in Germany last year, according to the magazine The Week in Germany. The group Schwulenverband in Deutschland (German Gay Association) received 378 reports to its anti-violence hotline in 1995, a 15 percent Medical Malpractice & increase over 1994. Police say perhaps only one in 10 gay-bashings is reported. NEPAL Nepal’s only gay group, the Nepal Queer Society, feels “that we do not have much contacts with gay people in Nepal or elsewhere,” spokes man “Krishna” told Trikone magazine. The group is seeking free subscriptions to gay publications, “advice on homosexuality,” and “lit erature, research findings, newsletters [and] re ports on HIV.” Write Nepal Queer Society, Attn: K.P. Sharma, GPO 8975, EPC 5203, Kathmandu, Nepal. ROMANIA Activists with the Romanian gay group Ac cept are worried about legislation moving through parliament that retains the nation’s ban on gay sex if the sex scandalizes anyone, and adds bans on “enticing or seducing a person to practice same- sex acts, as well as propaganda, associations or other forms of proselytizing with the same aim.” Such wording seemingly would make gay organizations illegal and, according to Amnesty International, violate the “universally recognized” rights to freedom of expression, assembly and association. The Senate has passed the draft revision to the Penal Code and sent it to the Chamber of Deputies for consideration. SERBIA Serbian lesbians and gay men hope to launch a campaign against official medical textbooks that classify homosexuality under the heading “Sexual Deviations and Disorders.” Included under the same heading with homo sexuality are bestiality, pedophilia, transvestitism, exhibitionism, transsexuality, frigidity, impotence, sadism, masochism and fetishism. “Being educated like this, it is not hard to imagine what is the general attitude of psychia trists in Serbia towards homosexuality, especially in smaller communities and among those of them who justify their homophobia with existing ‘sci entific’ facts,” activists said in a press release. VIETNAM “Condom Cafe” is open in Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City, dispensing coffee, rubbers and safer- sex information. Some start-up money was pro vided by the Euro pean aid agency Medecins du Monde (D octors of the World). The cafe also runs an AIDS-in- formation hot line, which received 20 calls during its first day of operation. ZIMBABWE “AIDS was brought to Zimbabwe by white people who intended to wipe out the black popu lation and take its land and wealth,” Zimbabwean Vice President Joshua Nkomo said April 6 at the funeral of his son, Ernest Thuthani, who died of the disease. The state news agency ZIANA also quoted Nkomo as saying, “Unfortunately it backfired because they too are dying of it, but still they have the knowledge of its origins and how it can be cured but they just do not want to share that knowledge.” Officials say about one in 10 Zimbabweans is infected with HIV and 300 die weekly from AIDS complications. Compiled by Rex Wockner Personal Injury Attorney Hala Gores Free Consultation No Fee Unless You Recover In te g r ity , E x p e r ie n c e <& R e s u lts 2 9 5 -1 9 4 0 12th Floor, 621 SW Morrison Salem Pride Saturday June 1 Keynote Speaker Chastity Bono Parade 10 a.m. “Celebrating Our Families” Staging at 9 a.m. at Capitol Coalition to End Bigotry P.O. 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