Scott Lively Struggles With Uganda’s Death Penalty

von Box Turtle Bulletin von Jim Burroway

Current TV’s Vanguard reporter Mariana van Zeller has posted some outtakes from her outstanding documentary “Missionaries of Hate“. Already, we saw a six-minute interview with Ugandan MP David Bahati, who introduced the Anti-Homosexuality Bill into Parliament in October 2009. What follows is an extended clip of her interview with Scott Lively, the American holocaust revisionist who delivered his infamous “Nuclear Bomb” at the March 2009 conference in Kampala that set the stage for the bill.

 

Lively leads off with the boast that he was “one of the people that helped to start the pro-family movement there. … This was all new to them.” And so they asked him to speak. It’s an interesting boast.  Lively claims credit for parachuting into this lost country and setting up a “pro-family” movement. Those poor Ugandan’s couldn’t have done it without him. But criticizing him for firming up the conditions that facilitated the Ugandans who put forth and supported the Anti-Homosexuality Bill, well, that’s racist to suggest Ugandans weren’t capable of doing this all on their own. (Of course, nobody has suggested such a thing. We’ve only noted his active participation in the process.) Yet there’s not even the slightest hint that this glaring contradiction has ever crossed his mind.

This clip also provides clearer context to Lively’s statement in the documentary where he calls the bill the “lesser of two evils,” the two evils being the bill itself or allowing the so-called “gay agenda” to take over Uganda. In the documentary, it wasn’t entirely clear whether the form of the bill he was endorsing as the “lesser of two evils” included or excluded the death penalty. In this clip, he’s more clearly against the death penalty, but he really has to struggle with it for quite a while before he gets there. After mulling over a few possibilities for its inclusion, he finally says, “I don’t believe that it’s… that I could support it that way.” Even still, it looked to me as though he was reluctant to say even this much against the bill. He looks as if he still needs some convincing.

Unofficial Rush Transcript

van Zeller:  Why did you go to Uganda?

Lively: Well, I went to Uganda because I was actually one of the people that helped to start the pro-family movement there. They were finding people there, primarily homosexual men from Europe and the United States coming into the country and working to try to change the social values. And they didn’t know what to do. They had never had a pro-family movement. This was all new to them. If we do nothing then we’re going to end up like the United States and Britain and Canada, you know, with a powerful gay movement just basically overwhelming everybody else’s values and forcing their agenda down everybody’s throats. So they wanted to draft some kind of law. And it wasn’t written at that point. It was just sort of the idea that they wanted to do something. So they invited me to come and speak along with a couple of other people from the U.S., and I did.

van Zeller: So then let me ask you very bluntlty. Dr. Lively, do you condemn this anti-gay bill in Uganda?

Lively: It’s my understanding they’re going to remove the death penalty. But if they keep the death penalty in it, yes, I condemn the death penalty for sexual crimes.

van Zeller: But all the other clauses, do you then support the rest of the bill if you remove the death penalty part?

Lively: I would not have written the bill this way. I said don’t emphasize punishment, emphasize rehabilitation. You could be the first country in the world to have a government-sponsored ex-gay therapy, where someone struggling with this would have the option of being able to go into this instead of being punished for it. And them I said, moreover, and as a separate matter, but within the law, you should emphasize marriage in your country. This is how you can deal with this. Nationwide, proactively, you begin the teach the value and the imports of marriage to every child in your schools from, at an age-appropriate instruction, all the way down to kindergarten, in which you help your children to see marriage as their goal.

van Zeller: Some people would even say it was written by some religious leaders such as Martin Ssempa.

Lively: I don’t think he wrote it. I think it was…

van Zeller: He was the influence of the writing of the bill.

Lively: Oh, I have no doubt. I have no doubt, I mean, politics works the same everywhere. There’s always a constituency that’s more interested than other people in a law being passed.

van Zeller: There have been a lot of American Evangelicals who have distanced themselves from this bill. What do you think of that?

Lively: Well I think that there’s, in the United States, the church is too heavily influenced by media opinion, and unfortunately, even pastors can go running for the hills when they think they are going to be smeared. Like I said, I would not have written the bill this way. But what it comes down to is a question of lesser of two evils, you know like many of the political choices that we have. What is the lesser of two evils here? To allow the American and European gay activists to continue to do to that country what they’ve done here? Or to have a law that may be overly harsh in some regards for people who are indulging in voluntary sexual conduct? I think the lesser of two evils is for the bill to go through.

van Zeller: Even with the death penalty attached to it?

Lively: Even with the death penalty… well, if it’s clearly restricted to pedophiles… I still don’t… No, I’ve told them I won’t support it if it has the death penalty in it. So even with that, I think that would do more harm… It’s, it’s, it’s just that’s the sort of vice that you’re sort of trapped in here. It’s two very extreme positions, and they’re… The Ugandans could have gone the middle course, and they didn’t have to go this far. So you’re sort of… people like myself are sort of stuck. Am I going to endorse something that goes too far to protect the whole society? You know, and I guess I have to say just on my principles I don’t believe that it’s… that I could support it that way.

van Zeller: Martin Ssempa said to us that he thought that all of these American Evangelicals that were now distancing themselves from the bill, and particularly Rick Warren, were “wimpy.” That’s what, the word he used. What do you think?

Lively: Well, I think he’s right. I think there’s a lot of the wimp factor in American Christianity. I wrote an essay on that theme several years ago called “Masculine Christianity” And it bemoans the sort of effeminacy that’s sort of crept into Christianity where Christian men, especially, don’t stand up for right and wrong and they run away when pressed with controversial issues. It’s just unfortunate. It doesn’t mean they don’t have good theology. It doesn’t mean they aren’t doing great things in their churches with the families that are there. But the real problem in American today isn’t what’s happening inside the church buildings. It’s what’s happening in the culture.
If I had been Rick Warren and I had been presented with this situation, I would have defended Martin Ssempa…

van Zeller: So you’re still a good friend and supporter of Martin Ssempa?

Lively: Yes. I think Martin Ssempa is a good man. He’s trying to protect all the children of his country from being homosexualized.

van Zeller: Do you think that your ideas regarding homosexuality are better received in Uganda than they are here in the United States?

Lively: [Laughs] Of course. Yeah, that’s a… well, Uganda is a Christian country and America is really not a Christian country anymore. There’s a lot of Christians still, but the people who are the gatekeepers sitting in the seats of power generally are not. And they’re following a very humanistic value system that is anti-Biblical in many ways.

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Copyright © Box Turtle Bulletin. All rights reserved.

Uganda's anti-homosexuality bill threatens HIV/AIDS fight

Wambi Michael

HIV campaigners fear a homophobic bill currently being discussed by the Uganda parliament will lead to further stigmatisation of the gay community in Uganda and could stop HIV positive people from accessing treatment and hamper the fight against HIV and AIDS.

Being gay and HIV positive in Uganda has never been easy. But life is set to get a lot harder for gay people seeking treatment for HIV and AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections.

Pereza (not his real name) knows better than most the difficulties gay people have in Uganda when it comes to accessing HIV treatment. When the 34-year-old, who works for a private business, first suspected that he was HIV positive he was too scared to go and be tested. "When I finally went to be tested, the counsellor asked me whether I had a partner," he told Panos. "I had to deceive her. If I had risked bringing a fellow man then I don't think I would have been enrolled for treatment."

"It takes courage for any gay person to seek medical treatment in this country," Pereza continued. "Most of us are dying because we cannot access treatment, care and support. You would be ridiculed if you dared to come out to tell a nurse or doctor that you are gay. Everyone would look at you as if you were something dirty."

The difficulties facing men and women like Pereza have recently come to light because of the so-called Anti Homosexuality Bill, a private member's bill currently being discussed by the Ugandan cabinet and which has created a growing climate of fear among the gay community in Uganda.

Already illegal

Homosexual acts are already illegal in this East African country, carrying a sentence of up to 14 years in prison. The bill, which was proposed towards the end of 2009 by David Bahati, an MP for the ruling National Resistance Movement, seeks to up this to life imprisonment. It also proposes the death sentence for a new offence of "aggravated homosexuality" – namely when one of the participants is under 16, disabled, HIV positive or a "serial offender".

An estimated 170,000 people are enrolled in government ARV treatment in Uganda with a further 100,000 expected to enrol by the middle of this year.

Dr. Stephen Watiti, the chairperson of the National Forum of People Living with HIV/AIDS Network, said about 80 percent of Uganda's ARV treatment is funded by foreign donors and any cuts in aid would directly affect HIV positive people. "Removing [any of] that money would be a death sentence to those receiving the treatment," he said.

Watiti said treatment interruptions caused by shortages of the drug could lead to a new drug resistant HIV epidemic. He added that criminalising HIV transmission in both homosexuals and heterosexuals would cause stigma that would fuel the disease, leading to more deaths.

Laban, a university student in Uganda's capital, Kampala, is scared.

"Some of my classmates know that I'm gay," the 23-year-old said. "With this law they are expected to report me to the police. If the bill is passed I will leave my studies and go into hiding."

He is referring to the fact that if the bill is passed anyone who fails to report within 24 hours the identities of any gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgendered person could be sent to prison for up to three years.

Prominent members of society "outed"

Some of the local newspapers have already "outed" prominent members of society they believe to be gay. Campaigners fear the bill could lead to McCarthy era witch hunts, sending the gay community underground and preventing effective anti HIV teaching.

Laban told Panos the gay community faces a lot of stigma. "You are expected to behave in a certain way which is approved by the culture and morals," he said. "So I have decided to live alone to avoid being ridiculed."

Frank Mugisha, head of Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG), is one of few gay Ugandans to actively campaign for their rights. As a result he has become a potential target and cannot go out without bodyguards. He told Panos the gay community has been living in fear since Bahati tabled his bill. "If the bill passes into law we will be ostracised by almost everyone in society. Already we can't go to overcrowded places because for fear of being attacked by a mob."

An "odious" bill

The bill has caused outcry, both internationally and in Uganda.

Barack Obama called the bill "odious", while several other leaders, including UK prime minister Gordon Brown, have put pressure on Uganda's president Yoweri Museveni to withdraw the bill.

One of those most strongly opposed to the bill is the Swedish government, which threatened to cut the $50 million in aid it gives Uganda each year if the bill is passed.

There have also been calls from US human rights campaigners for America to cut some of its considerable aid. The US is the biggest donor to Uganda's HIV treatment programmes under The US President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). From 2004 to the end of 2009 Uganda had received a total of almost US$1.5 billion. The money has helped provide more than 200,000 people living with HIV/AIDS with life-prolonging antiretroviral (ARV) drugs.

As a result of this pressure, the bill now looks likely to be watered down. Museveni has himself changed tack. Having previously condemned homosexuals, he has distancing himself from the bill, declaring parliament's handling of it "must take into account our foreign policy interests". Meanwhile, David Bahati announced in January that he would be willing to amend the bill - though he did not say how.

Strong support for the bill

However, the voices supporting the bill – and denouncing foreign countries for intervening in Uganda's affairs – remain very strong.

Bahati has the support of Uganda's powerful lobby of Evangelical and Anglican bishops, many of whom have been outspoken in favour of the bill and who have the power to sway public opinion.

Archbishop Henry Luke Orombi of the Church of Uganda, the country's main Anglican Church which claims to represent 30 per cent of all Ugandans, publically confirmed his support for the bill in February at the General Synod, the national assembly of the Church of England, in London.

In a formal statement Orombi said the Church of Uganda "particularly appreciate[s] the objectives of the Bill which seek to... prohibit and penalize homosexual behaviour and related practices in Uganda as they constitute a threat to the traditional family." He also remarked that: "Homosexual practice has no place in God's design of creation, the continuation of the human race through procreation or His plan of redemption" and that "lesbianism, bestiality and other sexual perversions" should also be prohibited.

"State-legislated genocide"

Some members of the Christian community have spoken out against the bill and Ugandan society is divided. Canon Gideon Byamugisha, a prominent member of Uganda's Anglican Church, described the bill as "state-legislated genocide against a specific community".

Christopher Senyonjo, a retired Anglican bishop living in Uganda, said: "The bill will push Uganda towards being a police state. There is lack of understanding about homosexuality – it is not [about] recruitment [of gay people], it is [about] orientation."

Yet it is the feeling on the streets of Kampala and across Uganda that is likely to determine what happens, as MPs will court popular opinion.

Young preachers, encouraged by the churches, preach against homosexuality on Kampala's busy street corners.

One of these preachers is Betty Wanyaka. She told Panos: "I'm a mother and I believe in God, so I'm against homosexuality. The Word says men have to marry woman not man and man."

But not everyone agrees. Calvin Kanyali, a young salesman from Kampala, said there were more pressing issues than attacking the gay community.

"People are dying of cancer, the hospitals have no medicine but they want to spend the little money there is chasing after homosexuals. This shouldn't be the biggest priority for our MPs," he said.

HIV/AIDS' rates could rise on wave of homophobia

Gerald Sentongo, the Administrator of Sexual Minorities Uganda (SMUG), told Panos that if the bill was passed it would further complicate efforts to prevent HIV/AIDS among homosexuals in Uganda.

Around 5.4 per cent of Uganda's population is HIV positive, according to official government statistics. Campaigners fear this figure could rise with the rising tide of homophobia.

"No one will come out to seek treatment knowing that the nurse, counsellor or doctor is required by law to report a homosexual and have him arrested by police," Mr Sentongo said.

All our journalism is free to reproduce, unless otherwise noted. Please get in touch with media@panos.org.uk for more information or to let us know that you've reproduced something.

Bing censors gay and lesbian searches in Arabic countries

Microsoft's Bing search engine has been accused of censoring non-pornographic gay and lesbian searches in Arabic countries.

Technology website The Register reports that testing of the search engine in January found it filtered out English and Arabic words related to homosexuality.

The test was carried out by Open Net Initiative, which said that people using the Arabic version of Bing in Arabic countries saw a pop-up message when they searched for certain words.

The message said: "Your country or region requires a strict Bing SafeSearch setting, which filters out results that might return adult content."

Researchers said that Arabic words which were filtered in website searches included the terms "gay", "lesbian" and "homosexuality".

Presumably, this would prevent users of the Arabic version of Bing from accessing information about gay equality, health and news.

Bing filters out English keywords such as “gay,” “lesbian,” “homosexual,” and “queer” when searching for images, however, using these words to search for websites is permitted.

Other terms blocked by the search engine included "porn”, “sex”, “penis”, “sodomy" and "homo".

However, the Open Net Initiative found that Bing does not place geographical limits on which version of the search engine people can use.

Study authors wrote: "If a user physically located in an Arab country chooses to use an uncensored version of Bing tailored to another country (eg, USA or UK), he/she will not experience any keyword filtering even if he/she uses a keywords filtered by Bing for Arabian countries.

"Additionally, in the case of Arabic keywords, users can sidestep the search engine censorship regime by adding another non-filtered Arabic keyword to the filtered one."

Researchers did not find any evidence of Bing blocking Arabic or English terms relating to other censorship issues, such as "democracy", "equality" or "opposition".

They concluded: "It is unclear, however, whether Bing’s keyword filtering in the Arab countries is an initiative from Microsoft, or whether any or all of the Arab states have asked Microsoft to comply with local censorship practices or laws.

"Filtering at the keyword level results in overblocking, as banning the use of certain keywords [...] prevents users from accessing – based on Microsoft’s definition of objectionable content – legitimate content such as sex education and encyclopedic information about homosexuality."

Microsoft has not commented on the claims.

Is this Love?

I cant seem to be able to get time these days. But, I have to.

Today is Friday. That is when we shall see whether or not the government in Kenya will be protecting its gay citizens in Mombasa against anti-gay attacks, which are supposed to occur after the Friday Prayers. 1pm today.

But, here is another, very personal development.

First, it would be instructive to read the whole report at LGBT Asylum news.

And, then you get to the bottom of the report, there is this poster.

David Kuria Mbote happens to be the director of Gays and Lesbians of Kenya. He wrote this article in response to some homophobic insult from a priest justifying the lynching of gay people.

And, for this poster, here is my translation of the Swahili above. It is not perfect, but I know I have it right.

Basically, besides the pic of David, with his full names, email address, GALCK phone number, a verse from the bible is quoted. 

'If a man sleeps with another man like he sleeps with a woman, both men have done something extremely bad. It is a must for them to be killed, and their blood shall be on their own heads' 

My swahili fails at the translation of what verse in the bible it is. Something, maybe Leviticus 20:23

Yeah, Isn't this love?

Just hope and Pray David, that you are safe after this kind of hate thing.

And, according to LGBT asylum news, do you want to know what ProjectSee is?

No. They are not Kenyans.
Ugandans? No, they are not Ugandans.
Then where the hell are these guys coming from who are nakedly threatening a poor Kenyan with death? Here is the answer.

ProjectSee.com, which is based in Kansas City, is raising funds to 'equip our Kenyan Brothers with Cameras, Banners, Fliers, Posters, Bus Fare; the Tools they Need to STOP Exporting Evil'.

Yes, they are Americans. At least that is what I surmise.

Surely, the Culture Wars, America's Culture wars are here in Africa.

Homosexuality in Islam

In the name of Allah, the most gracious, the most merciful

Traditional Muslim scholars interpret some verses of the Quran as a condemnation of homosexuality altogether. However, more recently there has been a new breed of liberal Muslims who have commented on the Quran in a slightly different manner to those held by most Muslims. To the vast majority of the Muslim gays and lesbians the threat of hell fire cited by the Shariah scholars is the main cause of their uneasiness, anxiety, and the utter denial of their homosexuality. The fear of God’s punishment in the Hereafter if a homosexual person is to get tempted and have sex with a member of his or her sex brings a huge amount of stress and conflict between religion and sexuality and consequently leads a lot of Muslims away from their faith altogether. The verses that are used to refer to homosexuality are those narrating the story of the people of Lot and their eventual annihilation by God because of their unrepentant transgressions and way of life.

We also (sent) Lut: he said to his people: "Do ye commit lewdness such as no people in creation (ever) committed before you?”For ye practice your lusts on men in preference to women: ye are indeed a people transgressing beyond bounds." And his people gave no answer but this: they said, "drive them out of your city: these are indeed men who want to be clean and pure!" But We saved him and his family, except his wife: she was of those who lagged behind. And We rained down on them a shower (of brimstone): then see what was the end of those who indulged in sin and crime! (The Holy Quran, 7:80-84) "Of all the creatures in the world, will ye approach males, "And leave those whom Allah has created for you to be your mates? Nay, ye are a people transgressing (all limits)!" (26:165-166) “And Lot! when he said unto his folk: Will ye commit abomination knowingly?

Must ye needs lust after men instead of women? Nay, but ye are folk who act senselessly.”(27:54-55)

And (remember) Lut: behold, he said to his people: "Ye do commit lewdness, such as no people in Creation (ever) committed before you. "Do ye indeed approach men, and cut off the highway? - and practise wickedness (even) in your councils?" But his people gave no answer but this: they said: "Bring us the Wrath of Allah if thou tellest the truth." (29:28-29)

To the Muslim gays and some straight liberals, these verses are taken to mean that the people of Lut were not homosexuals per se but heterosexuals who raped men and indulged in gay sex as a pleasure and culture. They also quote the following verses from the Holy Quran and the Hadiths (or sayings of the Prophet (peace be upon him)) to indicate that homosexuality is not illegal at all and that there are allowances for it in Islam:

And say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that they should not display their beauty and ornaments except what (must ordinarily) appear thereof; that they should draw their veils over their bosoms and not display their beauty except to their husbands, their fathers, their husband's fathers, their sons, their husbands' sons, their brothers or their brothers' sons, or their sisters' sons, or their women, or the slaves whom their right hands possess, or male servants free of physical needs, or small children who have no sense of the shame of sex; and that they should not strike their feet in order to draw attention to their hidden ornaments. And O ye Believers! turn ye all together towards Allah, that ye may attain Bliss. (24:31)

It is said that Almighty God is referring to the Gay men with the words “or male servants free from physical needs”……However, many commentators of the Quran interpret the above mentioned words to mean old men who have passed age of sexual desires. They do so deliberately in order to avoid the word “homosexual”. To me this is very unreasonable as the following points indicate:Some people lose their sexual vitality and vigour as they grow older but many are sexually active even into the eighties! Remember prophet Ibrahim had both Ismail and Isaac with his wives Hager and Sahra respectively when he was very old. Also, the very old people are not usually employed as servants as their efficiency and ability to do jobs have greatly diminished with age. Therefore, the only logical interpretation of the above mentioned verse is that it refers to gay men.

 “Unto Allah belongeth the Sovereignty of the heavens and the earth. He createth what He will. He bestoweth female (offspring) upon whom He will, and bestoweth male (offspring) upon whom He will; Or He mingleth them, males and females, and He maketh barren whom He will. Lo! He is Knower, Powerful.”(42:49-50)

And when she was delivered she said: My Lord! Lo! I am delivered of a female - Allah knew best of what she was delivered - the male is not as the female; and lo! I have named her Mary, and lo! I crave Thy protection for her and for her offspring from Satan the outcast. (3:36)

Volume 7, Book 62, Number 13h: Narrated Abu Huraira: I said, "O Allah's Apostle! I am a young man and I am afraid that I may commit illegal sexual intercourse and I cannot afford to marry." He kept silent, and then repeated my question once again, but he kept silent. I said the same (for the third time) and he remained silent. Then repeated my question (for the fourth time), and only then the Prophet said, "O Abu Huraira! The pen has dried after writing what you are going to confront. So (it does not matter whether you) get yourself castrated or not."  What does God Almighty mean when He said: "........Lo! I am delivered of a female - Allah knew best of what she was delivered - the male is not as the female;............"?

The last Hadith is interpreted by some that Abu Huraira was referring to His homosexuality and that the Prophet allowed him to get castrated (to follow his homosexual instincts) if he wished.In one Hadith the prophet actually explicitly forbade the mutilation of the testicles!

Malik's Muwatta Book 51, Number 51.1.4: Yahya related to me from Malik from Nafi that Abdullah ibn Umar disapproved of castration and said, "The completeness of the created form is in the testicles.

So in that sense the prophet (pbuh) might not have told Abu Huraira to cut off his testicles but rather to follow where his nature takes him. To be honest I do not completely understand the meaning of the word ‘castration’ in the context of the aforementioned Hadith but just compare the Prophet’s reply to Abu Huraira’s question with his stern reply to the other companions in those Hadiths. If Abu Huraira wasn’t gay then why would the Prophet (pbuh) allow castration for him and forbid it to the rest? Some people are of the opinion that even if homosexuality is natural thing that people are born with, it would be illegal to practice as the Quran expressly prohibits it and that the commandments inscribed in the Quran by Almighty God will not be affected irrespective of its nature. Many Muslims also cite the fact that life itself is a test and that everyone will have his or her test whether it is with health, wealth, family, or in this case sexuality. They say that the homosexual people are being tested by God to stay chaste as gay and lesbian sex would violate the laws of God and hence call for His punishment both in this World and in the Hereafter. But the opponents of the gay rights are clearly contradicting themselves. In their argument, they say sex between members of the same sex is a violation of the natural order of things as males and females are made for each other to reproduce offspring. On this basis Muslim gays and lesbians are often advised by their families and the wider Muslim community to get married in the traditional sense or not to have sex at all. What I found more absurd is that abstinence by a straight men or women is strongly discouraged by Muslim legal scholars. The reasons given for this stance are many but the most important one is that marriage forms half of one’s Imaan or faith according to the following authentic Hadith of the holy Prophet (pbuh).

Volume 7, Book 62, Number 11: Narrated Sad bin Abi Waqqas: Allah's Apostle forbade 'Uthman bin Maz'un to abstain from marrying (and other pleasures) and if he had allowed him, we would have gotten ourselves castrated. (1)  Volume 7, Book 62, Number 13o: Narrated 'Abdullah: We used to participate in the holy battles led by Allah's Apostle and we had nothing (no wives) with us. So we said, "Shall we get ourselves castrated?" He forbade us that and then allowed us to marry women with a temporary contract (2) and recited to us: -- 'O you who believe! Make not unlawful the good things which Allah has made lawful for you, but commit no transgression.' (5.87)  Volume 7, Book 62, Number 1: Narrated Anas bin Malik: A group of three men came to the houses of the wives of the Prophet asking how the Prophet worshipped (Allah), and when they were informed about that, they considered their worship insufficient and said, "Where we are from the Prophet as his past and future sins have been forgiven." Then one of them said, "I will offer the prayer throughout the night forever." The other said, "I will fast throughout the year and will not break my fast." The third said, "I will keep away from the women and will not marry forever." Allah's Apostle came to them and said, "Are you the same people who said so-and-so? By Allah, I am more submissive to Allah and more afraid of Him than you; yet I fast and break my fast, I do sleep and I also marry women. So he, who does not follow my tradition in religion, is not from me (not one of my followers)."

Moreover, when Muslims accept if at all that one is born gay, lesbian, or straight and cannot help but feel attracted to one’s own sex, some go on to say that gays, lesbians, or bisexuals should never reveal their sexuality to others as this will promote vice. In effect, they are arguing one to lie about one’s sexuality which is actually a violation of Islamic law as lies is strictly forbidden in Islam.

And cover not Truth with falsehood, nor conceal the Truth when ye know (what it is). (2:42) Ye People of the Book! Why do ye clothe Truth with falsehood, and conceal the Truth, while ye have knowledge? (3:71) To Allah belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth, and the Day that the Hour of Judgment is established, - that Day will the dealers in Falsehood perish! (45:27)

What is completely ignored though is that for a homosexual to have sex with a member of the opposite sex is a violation of his or her natural feelings and hence should incur God’s anger. Also what is not thought about when dishing out “religious advices” to homosexuals is that coercing them into marriage would almost certainly lead to friction and the eventual break up of that marriage for there is an absence of that sexual bond to sustain such a marriage. There is a wealth of evidence from married homosexuals that straight marriages lead to depression and a host of other problems not only for the homosexual but also for his or her straight partner in the ‘marriage’. These problems clearly undo the purpose for which marriage was instituted in Islam as the following verses indicate:

And among His Signs is this, that He created for you mates from among yourselves, that ye may dwell in tranquillity with them, and He has put love and mercy between your (hearts): verily in that are Signs for those who reflect.(30:21)

They (wives) are garments for you, while you are garments for them. (2:187)

As according to the following Hadith found in the collections of Abu Da’uud, the prophet makes it clear the undesirability of divorce, wouldn’t it be hypocritical to push the gay Muslims into such actions hated by the prophets whilst advising the straight Muslims to avoid it by choosing the most suitable partners?! Of course a divorce is inevitable in most of the marriages involving one homosexual and one straight partner. 

The most hateful of all lawful things, in the sight of Allah, is divorce.

And arguing the believers not to rush into divorces before exhausting all other options, Almighty God says in the Quran:

Live with them on a footing of kindness and equity. If you take a dislike to them, it may be that you dislike a thing while Allah brings about through it a great deal of good. (Qur’an 4:19)

If homosexuality is a “test” in life for some believers as many people claim, then we will have the problem of contradictions in the Quran since God Almighty mentioned in the Quran that there is relieve after every hardship as the following verse clearly demonstrate:

So, verily, with every difficulty, there is relief (95:5)

So keeping in mind the meaning of the above verse; where is the relieve for the homosexual Muslim from the daily temptations that is brought on them directly as a result of his or her unconventional sexuality as the provision of marriage is not an option for them? Well, some people might argue that disabilities and other forms of misfortunes which are by the way a test of faith for the some people can also be life-long conditions too. But then let us not forget that disabilities do not necessarily lead one to temptation as does homosexuality which means that a disable person due to his or her disability does not have to fight Satan’s “whispers” as does a gay or lesbian due to their sexuality.In fact, homosexuality is not a short term “problem or a trial” at all but a life-long characteristic of a human being (or an animal as we all know) that is an enduring and natural as the attraction between males and females in the animal kingdom.There is also the other question that comes to mind when homosexuality is condemned: will the merciful Creator of all punish His creation for just following the natural order He ordained for them? If yes, then that means a large section of His creation is already doomed from its inception and so the doctrine of freewill in Islam becomes meaningless.  According to the above mentioned arguments, it becomes manifest if the legal line of the traditional Islamic scholars is follows, there will be one set of laws for the homosexuals and another one for the heterosexuals. Since without a doubt Islam is a religion of reason, the current position of the Muslim jurists is unsustainable and an open and honest debate about the legal status of homosexuality and the homosexuals is paramount. In the end God will judge us all as only He knows the ultimate truth.  

Despite the apparent suicide of its prime suspect, the Navy will continue to investigate the death of Seaman August Provost III, the gay sailor shot to death at the base in late June, a Navy spokesman said.

"The investigation into Seaman Provost's death is continuing - that has not changed," said Brian O'Rourke, spokesman for the Navy Region Southwest. "We have Seaman Provost's family's interests at heart. We owe them explanations or answers. We owe them that."

Provost's family and gay rights advocates have said that the sailor's death was a hate crime and have urged the Navy to disclose more details of its investigation.

Navy officials maintain that Provost's death was not a hate crime.

They've said he was instead apparently the victim of a crime spree by Petty Officer Jonathan Campos, 32, of Lancaster, who planned to set fire to one of the landing crafts Provost was guarding at the time of the killing.

Campos, who was taken into custody just days after the killing, was found unresponsive Friday at 12:21 p.m. in his brig cell at Camp Pendleton.

He was pronounced dead at the base hospital an hour later, apparently after ingesting toilet paper, officials have said.

An investigation has been opened into his death, as well, the Navy spokesman said Monday, calling such a move "standard for the circumstances."

Campos, a gas system technician assigned to the same Assault Craft Unit 5 as Provost, was charged last month with murder, solicitation to commit murder, arson, theft, unlawful entry and a host of other crimes in connection with Provost's killing June 30.

While in military custody, Campos tried twice to commit suicide, O'Rourke said Monday.

The spokesman said he did not know how Campos tried to kill himself those times, but that it was a by different method.

Campos had been alone in his cell on a suicide watch at the brig, with guards visually checking on him every five minutes and speaking with him every 30 minutes, the spokesman said. A guard last spoke with Campos at 11:45 a.m., officials said.

A spokeswoman for the Marine Corps base said late Monday that Campos had been "under constant supervision," and that a log shows a guard visually checked him every five minutes. The spokeswoman, Maj. Kristin Lasica-Khaner, noted that Campos was in a cell with 24-hour per day close-circuit video monitoring.

She did not immediately know whether investigators have reviewed video from just before the apparent suicide attempt.

Records from the last five years show no suicides at the Marine Corps base's brig, she added.

Officials with the Navy and the San Diego County medical examiner's office said they had not heard of any prior suicides committed by toilet paper ingestion.

"It's not something I've ever seen or heard of," O'Rourke said.

He said an autopsy is scheduled this week on Campos, although he did not know exactly when.

He said more information about the suicide, including how much paper Campos apparently ingested and an exact cause of death, would be revealed in that examination.

Through statements from Campos and the Navy's investigation, officials learned that Campos stole a .45 caliber Kimber pistol and an Xbox video game system, video games and jewelry from another servicemember's home on or near June 13.

O'Rourke said the pistol was the same one used to kill Provost.

Campos also took Provost's 9 mm Beretta handgun after the shooting, and was charged with wrongful possession of that gun, O'Rourke said.

Also after Provost's killing, investigators learned that Campos had been taking psilocybin mushrooms, a hallucinogenic, from May 1 through June 2, the spokesman said.

O'Rourke said he did not immediately know whether military officials had reprimanded Campos for any crimes on base in the weeks or months leading up to the killing.

He said Campos had been arrested by civilian police June 20 on suspicion of driving under the influence in Imperial Beach

CHRIS NICHOLS - cnichols@nctimes.com

Shock at Senegal gay jail terms

The jailing in Senegal of nine gay men for eight years over "indecent conduct and unnatural acts" has been condemned by an international gay rights group.

Homosexual acts are illegal in Senegal but the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) told the BBC it was "shocked by the ruling".

The judge added three years to a five-year sentence, saying the men were also members of a criminal group.

Most of them belonged to an association set up to fight HIV and Aids.

"This is the first time that the Senegalese legal system has handed down such a harsh sentence against gays," said Issa Diop, one of the men's four defence lawyers.

“ The extremity of this sentence [and] the rapidness of the trial all really shocks us in a country which has been moving so positively towards rule of law ”
IGLHRC's Cary Alan Johnson

Mr Diop said he would be appealing against the sentences.

The IGLHRC's Cary Alan Johnson said he was "deeply disturbed" by the case.

"There have been pretty consistent human rights violations… in Senegal," he told the BBC's Network Africa programme from Cape Town in South Africa.

"But the extremity of this sentence [and] the rapidness of the trial all really shocks us in a country which has been moving so positively towards rule of law and a progressive human rights regime."

'Schizophrenic'

The head of a gay rights organisation in Senegal told AFP news agency that the situation for gay people in the country was getting worse.

"Many gays are already fleeing to neighbouring countries because of our living conditions," he said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Senegal is a predominantly Muslim country and gay men and women remain socially marginalised.

Mr Alan Johnson said Senegal was "schizophrenic" in its attitudes.

Religious attacks on gay and lesbian people were on the increase, he said.

While Senegal recently played host to a major conference on Aids and sexually transmitted diseases, where "the needs of men who have sex with men were prominently featured", he said.

"There's both a movement towards progressive and inclusive culture but at the same time very, very strong movements towards oppression, specifically towards sexuality," he added.

In February 2008, a magazine editor received death threats after publishing pictures claiming to depict a wedding ceremony between two men.

Several men were also arrested in connection with the publication but later released.

Ex-Brazilian cop questioned in death of 13 gays

SAO PAULO, Brazil A retired police officer has been detained in connection with the murders of 13 gay men in a low-income suburb of Sao Paulo, police said Thursday.

Retired state police Sgt. Jairo Francisco Franco was taken into custody Wednesday night after a witness identified him as the killer of a homosexual man on Aug. 19, said police inspector Paulo Fortunato.

Franco is suspected of acting alone in all of 13 killings between February 2007 and August 2008 at Paturis Park, a favorite meeting point for gay men, Fortunato said.

The suspect, who worked as a private security guard in a supermarket, has denied the charges, Fortunato said. He added that Franco did not yet have a lawyer.

"We have a credible witness who says he saw Franco pump 12 bullets into a black gay man inside the park," Fortunato said in a telephone interview.

A second witness said Franco visited the park frequently, "apparently cruising for gay men and victims," Fortunato said.

Police have dubbed the killer of the 13 men as the "rainbow maniac," a reference to the gay-pride symbol.

"We are convinced he is the rainbow maniac we have been looking for," Fortunato said.

Homosexual men have significantly lower personal incomes than heterosexual individuals

A new study in the Canadian Journal of Economics provides the first evidence on sexual orientation and economic outcomes in Canada. The study found that gay men have 12 percent lower personal incomes and lesbians have 15 percent higher personal incomes than heterosexual men and women.

Christopher S. Carpenter of The Paul Merage School of Business at the University of California Irvine used data from the Canadian Community Health Survey which includes standard demographic questions as well as self-reports on sexual orientation.

Like previous patterns found in the U.S. and the U.K., results show that gay men have significantly lower personal incomes than similarly situated straight individuals, while lesbians have significantly higher personal incomes than straight women.

Also, similar to gay and straight differences in the U.S., gay men and lesbians in Canada are more likely to live in urban areas and more highly educated than heterosexuals in Canada.

Homosexual intolerance thrives

by: Bailey Singletary

A few weeks ago, a 14-year-old boy fired two bullets into the head of a 15-year-old fellow male student in the computer lab at their school. It has been rumored that the boy was shot because he was gay and asked the shooter to be his valentine earlier in the week.

Hate crimes happen every day with no national media coverage, but this was a headline on most U.S. newspapers. I was appalled when I read the story, even though I've read stories before about people being killed because of sexual orientation.

The question that must be asked is this: Who or what is teaching this young boy to hate someone because of whom that person chooses to be with in life?

The young boy, Lawrence King, began to show his feminine side by wearing makeup and women's clothing to school. When people made fun of him, he simply said they couldn't change the person he was.

Teasing is a normal part of junior high school. I was teased because I looked somewhat like a bird due to my skinniness, but no one put a gun to my head because of it.

But when it comes to violence that reaches beyond a bully pushing the nerdy kid around, there is a huge problem in the school and in the home of the violent child.

Some people have gone so far as to say that the killer is just as much of a victim as King. The media is claiming that the shooter, Brandon McInerney, is simply a victim of homophobia. That's like saying James Earl Ray, who shot and killed Martin Luther King Jr., is simply a victim of racism, as well as members of the Ku Klux Klan.

It is hard to convince me that this child of 14 wasn't taught somewhere in his life that gay people shouldn't be alive. Normal 14-year-old boys don't bring guns to school and shoot another student in the head just because he's gay. Although violence is never the answer, I can understand the bully waiting for the boy outside of class to beat him to a pulp, but the idea of intentional murder at such a young age is absolutely terrifying.

Thankfully, McInerney will be tried as an adult. But his parents also should be brought into the mix at some point in time, because they have probably taught him that being gay isn't OK.

I know some people take the Bible very literally, and there are many people who do not agree with homosexuality, so this case is somewhat being blown to the side.
But if a 14-year-old was killed because of the color of his skin, this would be a much bigger deal.

My question is this: Why is homophobia not on the same level as sexism, racism and anti-Semitism? It seems to me that there are too many people in this world teaching children that not everyone is created equal and that it's OK to hate someone because of whom he or she loves.
© Copyright 2008 The Reflector

Is America Ready for a Gay 'Idol'?

LOS ANGELES - No finalist has ever been portrayed as openly gay during the past six seasons of "American Idol." With more details about contestants' personal lives being exposed — both on the show and unofficially online — that could change, and soon.

Or will it be "Idol" business as usual?

"It feels like we're closer now than ever to having an openly gay contestant on the show," says Jim Verraros, who came out after his run as a finalist on the first season of "Idol."

"I'm not here to name any names, but I feel like there are some definite possibilities for this to happen this year," he said. "Do I think it'll happen? I don't know. I hope it does."

On Thursday, the current 16 semifinalists will be narrowed down to 12 finalists, who will perform live each week until the seventh winner of "American Idol" is selected by the voting public. At its core, "Idol" is a singing competition, but finalists' popularity has always seemed to play a big role in who moves forward.

When reached for comment about this story, Fox and "Idol" producers issued the following statement to The Associated Press: "We do not comment on the personal lives of the show participants." None of the current contestants have been made available for comment.

Over the years, however, "Idol" has devoted plenty of screentime to participants' personal lives, ranging from asking intimate questions of the contestants (this week it's "What was your most embarrassing moment?") to aiming the camera at their sobbing significant others in the audience, to airing fully edited segments about their backgrounds.

"The show hasn't seemed very conducive or gay friendly to contestants coming out," says Michael Jensen, editor of AfterElton.com, a Web site about gay and bisexual men in entertainment and the media. "Simon and Randy have not hesitated to mock effeminate contestants and crack the occasional gay joke. It has not communicated to contestants that it would be a good place to come out."

Every season, blogs and message board users endlessly speculate about the sexuality of contestants. Online clues hinting at their sexual orientation often emerge, but Fox and "Idol" producers have never addressed such rumors or depicted openly gay finalists as such on the show or on AmericanIdol.com.

Such speculation isn't new.

Will Young, the first champion of "American Idol's" British predecessor "Pop Idol," was rumored to be gay — then publicly came out following his win. In 2005, a gay personal ad featuring U.S. season-four finalist Anwar Robinson was discovered on BlackPlanet.com. And second-season runner-up Clay Aiken continues to be a constant source of "is he or isn't he?" gossip — though he's always maintained that he isn't.

"Gay people, like everybody, want to see themselves reflected on television," says Jensen. "I think that when a show hasn't reflected that, and goes on and on not reflecting that, it sort of raises the ante, and each season people begin speculating even more intensely about who may be gay."

This week, a video of flamboyant current semifinalist Danny Noriega lashing out against Santa Claus appeared on MySpace and was posted on several blogs. Another video of Noriega singing Aretha Franklin's "Chain of Fools" and rapping about being gay — all while wearing a do-rag — was also posted on YouTube.

"Yeah, I'm gay," raps Noriega in the video. "But you eat hay for dinner, 'cause you look like a horse ... ."

Last week, "Idol"-bashing VoteForTheWorst.com posted photos of scantily clad semifinalist David Hernandez working at gay nightclub Burn, as well as rumors that he was a stripper at Dick's Cabaret in Phoenix. Club manager Gordy Bryan told the AP on Monday that Hernandez did indeed dance fully nude and perform lap dances for the club's "mostly male" clientele.

Club manager Bryan says he did not know anything about Hernandez's personal life while he was stripping at Dick's Cabaret. Hernandez's MySpace profile lists his sexual orientation as straight.

First-season finalist Verraros, who says he was out to fellow contestants and "Idol" staff but not on the show, was publicly outed when an online journal he kept in college, which included comments about dating guys, was discovered. "Idol" producers later asked Verraros to take down the LiveJournal.

"The message boards were so homophobic. The gay-bashing was awful," says Verraros. "It was horrible. They said a faggot would never win 'American Idol.' It was pretty intense. I think it's something you have to expect in this industry, whether it's 'American Idol' or a sitcom or Broadway. It's going to happen the more exposed you are."

Verraros decided not to come out until after the show and the subsequent tour, doing so in the pages of gay magazine The Advocate. Since then, Verraros released his first album, starred in the gay-themed indie film "Eating Out 2: Sloppy Seconds" and his currently working on his second album.

"Regardless of whether or not a contestant is gay, the talent is there," says Verraros. "That should always come first and foremost."

On the Net: http://www.americanidol.com

Gay Travels in the Muslim World

Michael T Luongo

Homosexuality doesn't officially exist in Muslim countries. These stories beg to differ

Like many Westerners, my knowledge of the Muslim world is limited. My only direct experience is of visiting Dubai, where homosexuality is illegal and homophobia is rife. I can't say it's a place I'd revisit in a hurry. Like everyone else, I've the heard the horror stories emanating from Iran and Saudi Arabia. So I must confess that my first thought when faced with a book called Gay Travels in the Muslim World was "Why?". Why travel to places where attitudes towards homosexuality are still stuck in the dark ages? Why pay your pink pounds into enconomies where gay rights aren't recognised? Why risk discrimination and worse in countries where gay men and women are locked up, publicly hanged or flogged to death? Why not go somewhere else instead?

The reailty, of course, is that what we commonly refer to as "the Muslim world" isn't monolithic. As this collection of true-life stories shows, there are many ways to be a Muslim. Editor Michael T Luongo was prompted to put this book together after calling for submissions for an earlier book, Between the Palms, and being surprised at the number of stories involving gay men's travels in the Middle East and experiences with Muslim men who had migrated to other countries. So there's the story of a nice Jewish boy who settles down in Mauritania, West Africa, and enjoys sex with local men, none of whom identifies as gay. There's the man in Bangladesh who takes a tour of the local cruising spots and discovers a world of prostitution and rooms rented for less than a dollar an hour. There's the editor himself in Afghanistan, where he's surprised to learn that, even under the Taliban, gay wedding ceremonies were taking place in Kandahar. And there's the gay soldier's tour of duty in Iraq, and touching encounter with a man he calls "The Gay Iraqi".

Luongo would probably take issue with the idea of a "gay Iraqi". In his introduction, he stresses that "a tremendous difference exists between how homosexuality is expressed in the Western world and the Islamic world... To simplify a very complex issue, in Europe and America and places under Western influence, homosexual desire and acts become the very definition of a person, they create an identity that separates him or her from the rest of society.

In much of the Islamic world, homosexual desire and acts are simply one aspect among others, something people do but not something that defines a person above all other traits". I must say I'm not entirely convinced by this argument. People who identify as gay are not necessarily guilty of separating themselves from the rest of society, any more than people who are Muslim are automatically guilty of separating themselves from those who are not. Many gay people are happily integrated with their heterosexual friends and family, just as many Muslims are integrated with the wider communities in which they live. And in cities like London at least, there are men and women who are both Muslim and openly gay.

Among the most cheering sights at Gay Pride recently were the gay Muslims with a banner proclaiming "Allah Doesn't Make Mistakes". On the other hand, there are large numbers of people in Europe and America who regularly have homosexual sex but do not identify as gay, either because they're genuinely bisexual or, more often, because they're riddled with guilt and have internalised homophobia. The refusal of a gay identity isn't an expression of free choice but a symptom of oppression. I dare say a similar thing occurs in countries more repressive than ours, where Pride marches are outlawed and homosexuality is so taboo that its very existence is denied. It was only a few months ago that Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad declared to the audience at a university in New York: "In Iran we don't have homosexuals like you do in your country." And maybe they don't. Maybe they have homosexuals who are far too terrified of ever coming out the American way, and who choose to see themselves as "men who have sex with men" because, quite frankly, it's their only chance of survival.

But survive they do, and their tales make illuminating reading. This book hasn't prompted me to change my holiday plans, but it has made me think seriously about what it means to be gay and Muslim. And that, surely, is a step in the right direction.

Uganda rejects a gay rights call

The gay activists in Kampala wore masks in case of recognition

Uganda will not give equal rights to gays and lesbians nor has it plans to legalise homosexuality, Ethics Minister James Nsaba Buturo has said.

He was responding to a call from the Sexual Minorities Groups in Uganda (Smug) which for the first time held a press conference demanding recognition.

They also accused the police of brutality and harassment.

The gay community is estimated by activists to number 500,000 in Uganda where they face much discrimination.

The BBC's Joshua Mmali in the Ugandan capital, Kampala, said many of those present at the press conference on Thursday wore masks, fearing to show their faces.

We have had enough of the abuse, neglect and violence Smug leader Victor Juliet Mukasa Is Africa homophobic?

Smug leader Victor Juliet Mukasa said she had been a victim of inhuman treatment.

She said police raided her home in 2005, took away documents and arrested her guest, whom they later forced to strip naked.

"We were treated in a degrading and inhumane way. Many of us have suffered similar injustice," she told journalists.

"We are here today to proclaim that these human rights violations are completely unacceptable. We have had enough of the abuse, neglect and violence."

But Mr Buturo told the BBC News website that homosexuality was "unnatural" and denied claims of police brutality and rights abuses.

"If they were being harassed, they would be in jail. We know them, we have details of who they are," he said.

'Demonised'

At the press conference, gay activist Dr Paul Ssemugoma called for education on same sex-relationships to reduce the incidence of HIV and other sexually-transmitted diseases among the gay community.

Uganda has won praise for its vigorous campaign against HIV/Aids.

It has helped to reduce the prevalence of the virus - which reached 30% in the 1990s - to single-digit figures.

Activists also hit out at the church, accusing the clergy of demonising them.

A Kenyan gay man, who had travelled to Kampala to show solidarity with his Ugandan counterparts, said homosexuals in East Africa are forced to live double lives.

"These people are subjected into being in forced marriages to cover up, yet they suffer inside," he said.

Hungary: Anti-Gay Protesters Throw Eggs, Smoke Bombs At Budapest Gay Rights Marchers

Several hundred skinheads and right-wing activists threw rotten eggs and smoke bombs at people participating in a gay rights parade in Hungary's capital Saturday.

Police detained several of the protesters and tried to disperse the rest, some of whom threw beer bottles at police. No injuries were reported.

Members of the Movement For A Better Hungary and the Hungarian National Front said they were angry about two recent developments.

On Thursday, Gabor Szetey, a state secretary in the prime minister's office, announced he was gay while the smaller party in the Socialist-led ruling coalition said it would seek to legalize gay marriages.

Some 2,000 people participated in Saturday's march, which took place over several kilometers, from Heroes' Square to the foot of one of the bridges over the Danube River.

Violence at Croatian Gay Pride march

ZAGREB - Police said they arrested eight people on Saturday after violence marred a Gay Pride march through the centre of the Croatian capital Zagreb.

Organisers said more than 20 marchers had been the target of homophobic attacks. "Around 10 people were hurt, with two needing medical treatment," Marko Jurcic, one of the organisers, told AFP.

Italian senator Gianpaolo Silvestri was in one of the groups attacked, but was unhurt, Jurcic said.

Police said the eight arrests were for threatening behaviour towards the marchers.

"Five of them were carrying what appeared to be Molotov cocktails, but the contents of the bottles they were carrying has yet to be analysed," police spokesman Marina Burazer said.

Earlier, around 200 homosexuals braved the jeers of onlookers to take part in the annual Gay Pride march through Zagreb to back demands for gay rights.

The marchers were protected by almost as many police as they made their way through the city centre, jeered and taunted by around 20 youths.

The leaders of the city's gay and lesbian association said they faced rejection, discrimination, job dismissals and physical assault in Croatia, whose population of 4.4 million is nearly 90 percent Roman Catholic.

The Croatian parliament passed legislation giving limited recognition for same-sex unions in 2003.