Introduction “You will not find any gay bars or clubs in Ashgabat (‘City of Love’), the capital city of Turkmenistan, despite a population of about one million people; homosexuality is illegal in Turkmenistan.” That is the welcoming message to gays from this rural and desolate country on the Caspian Sea in western Asia.  The LGBT ‘scene’ is hardly that. Not surprising, Turkmen gays and lesbians tend to be in the closet although there is a small gay community in the capital. “Gay Life in Turkmenistan” is very secretive and they keep to themselves, for good reason since the culture is Muslim and the country was brutalized by the Soviets and nearly destroyed by the thankfully deceased anti-gay dictator Saparmurat Niyazov from 1991 to 2006. Country Description Turkmenistan declared independence on 27 October 1991, one of the last Soviet republics to secede. Turkmenistan gained official recognition on 25 December 1991, a day

Introduction A visit to Uzbekistan is a lesson in retrograde human rights policies. The level of respect for freedom of press and expression is very low. The country is politically a police state filled with the usual  paranoia, repression, corruption and strong-arm enforcement of socialist ideologies that bring more suffering to people than progress. Needless to  say, the LGBT community in Uzbekistan is virtually non-existent as an organization even for health care purposes. The infamous jailing of an author of a HIV prevention brochure in 2010 caused outrage from human rights activists. His crime was to mention same sex activity in his educational brochure. It will be a long time before “Gay Life in Uzbekistan” and human rights take their rightful place in national policies in Uzbekistan.   Compiled by Richard Ammon GlobalGayz.com March 2012   Country Description Decades of questionable Soviet policies in pursuit of greater cotton production have

Introduction Both male and female same-sex sexual activities are legal in Tajikistan since 1998. The age of consent is 17.  But police are are reticent to address hate crimes, including the murder of a gay man in Dushanbe in 2011. Police have also been known to blackmail closeted individuals by threatening to expose them. Enclose here are three reports that offer analysis and overview of the challenges faced by LGBT activists and citizens in their efforts to bring about an acceptable “GayLife in Tajikstan”.   (1) Tajikistan: LGBT Community Stuck in the Shadows; No help – and sometimes worse – for the LGBT community in Tajikistan From Eurasianet.org January 23, 2012 Like many 28-year-olds in Tajikistan, Parviz is married. He and his wife have three children that they adore. But Parviz has a secret he can’t even share with his closest loved ones. “I got married at age 20 because

Introduction There is such fear and secrecy–and propaganda–about many aspects of North Korea that it is difficult to find anything reliable about everyday life there–and doubly so about homosexuality. The concept of same-sex attraction or “Gay Life in North Korea” hardly exists in the minds of people. Even with people who feel this attraction, there is ignorance about what it means or how it can be expressed in behavior. Compiled by Richard Ammon GlobalGayz.com May 20, 2005 Updated March 2012 Something About the Gay Situation in North Korea? A GlobalGayz.com reader recently wrote : I’d like to know something about the gay situation in North Korea. Could you send me an e-mail if you know something? GlobalGayz response: There is such fear and secrecy about many aspects of North Korea that it is difficult to find anything reliable about everyday life there–and doubly so about homosexuality. The concept of same-sex

Introduction Kyrgyzstan presents a difficult challenge for homosexual people. It is politically unstable with a recent history of violence among major ethnic groups; it is mostly rural with a population that is 80% Muslim and education levels are low. Corruption is common which results in widespread poverty. In such an environment any chance for tolerance toward “Gay Life in Kyrgyzstan” is slim despite the fact that same-sex activity was decriminalized in 1998, before the breakdown of the Soviet rulers in Kyrgyzstan. The main LGBT organization in Kyrgyzstan is Labrys: http://kyrgyzlabrys.wordpress.com/  Also at this site. (photo right: Labrys members during the Equality Caravan human rights tour at Lake Issyk-Kul) Country Description On 6 April 2010, a demonstration in the capital of Talas protested against government corruption and increased living expenses.  A revolution ensued that overthrew the former president and resulted in the adoption of a new constitution and the appointment of

Introduction East Timor (Timor L’este) is unique in southeast Asia–it is Roman Catholic, standing nearly alone among thousands of Islamic Indonesian islands (other than the Philippines, which is also catholic). But such a distinction does not make it any easier for LGBT citizens to live their personal lives. Male and female “gay life in East Timor”‘ is legal. There was a clause against discrimination based on sexual orientation included in the original draft of the Timorese Constitution but it was voted out by 52 out of 88 MPs before the constitution took effect in 2002. A modest effort has been made to bring support to the LGBT community with the creation of a website called Gay Timor (http://gaytimor.blogspot.com/) but a recent visit in March 2012 shows no activity there since September 2011 so one is left wondering about its viability. In Timor L’este it’s a little easier to be a

Introduction “Gay life in Brunei” is not a cause for celebration but rather for secrets and hidden desire. Same-sex love is forbidden in the sultanate and punishable with imprisonment (up to 10 years imprisonment or a fine of 30,000 Brunei dollars). It is a cruel fate to be born gay here under the shroud of Islam. Nevertheless, many people are born with this sexual orientation–despite ignorant assertions to the contrary–and are faced with a life of suppression and anxiety as they try to fit in smoothly with their cultural traditions and with the rules of their religion. In recent years there has been a tiny opening to the issue of homosexuality in Brunei as a formal study was made by academics at the University of Brunei Darussalam and presented in January 2011 at the ‘Social Issues In Brunei Darussalam’ seminar at the university. Titled ‘Gay In Brunei Darussalam: An Initial

Introduction Azerbaijan gay life is an emerging scene. Surrounded by rugged wilderness of high mountains and immense seas the fledgling “gay life in Azerbaijan” is also surrounded by Islamic homophobia and traditional ‘family values’. The balance between secular liberal tolerance and conservative religious rejection of sexual varieties is tipped toward the latter. But influences from the West–especially by potential EU membership with its human rights standards–have given courage and hope to many LGBT citizens for a brighter future. Homosexuality has been removed as a crime and a brave LGBT organization has appeared. (photo right: Azerbaijan coat of arms) Compiled by Richard Ammon GlobalGayz,com March 2012 Country Description Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, Azerbaijan has an ancient and historic cultural heritage. The country was among the birthplaces of mankind and is located at the heart of ancient civilizations.Furthermore the country is known to be among the

by Rainer Ebert 30 January 2012 Babu and Arif have been friends from childhood. They went to school together, played on the same cricket team and had no secrets – except one, but only until recently. While they were out having phuchkas at a street stand somewhere in Dhaka, Arif suddenly slipped into an awkward silence for a couple of seconds. “Babu, shon, toke amar kichu bolar ache… Listen, I want to tell you something…” “What is it, dosto?” “I haven’t been fully honest with you… Remember when I told you that I really like that girl? That wasn’t quite true. It’s actually her brother I like. I am gay.” Babu, shocked at the unexpected confession and not quite sure how to respond, got up and walked away. No matter how often Arif tried to call Babu in the following days, there was no response. Six months went by until

By Lisa Out & Around: Stories from a Not-So-Straight Journey Jan 04, 2012 In 2009 in a landmark case, the Delhi High Court challenged the constitutionality of India’s anti-sodomy law, Section 377. The results have catapulted India into a stronger gay rights movement. Out & Around met with Aditya Bondyopadhyay (photo right), a leading attorney on the legal team that constructed the case. Aditya now spends most of his time training attorneys across India on LGBT rights. Out & Around: Tell us about your work leading up to the decriminalization of homosexuality in 2009. Aditya: I worked on the case beginning in 2001. The case became a focus of mobilization for LGBT activists. Earlier, people were doing their own things due to geography in this country being so vast. What the case really did was unite groups across India by way of a national movement. We had a common enemy,

By Lisa Out & Around: Stories From a Not-So-Straight Journey Jan 09, 2012 In a bursting country of billion people, it’s rare to be known as the “first” to do anything. Yet, journalist Ashok Row Kavi (photo right) is well-known in India for being the first gay person to come out publicly in the country. His first coming out interview was in 1986 with Savvy Magazine, an Indian feminist magazine, explaining what “gay” really meant. With his background in journalism, he founded Bombay Dost, India’s first gay magazine in 1990. In 1994, Ashok went on to establish the Humsafar Trust, a large sexual health NGO in India which focuses on HIV and LGBT rights. We caught up with Ashok in Delhi to talk about gay life in India… Out & Around: What is unique about India? Ashok: Everybody looks at India like a country, a nation. I think this is

The practice of taking young boys to perform as dancers at private parties is known as bacha bazi (literally, “boy for play”) and is an Afghan tradition with very deep roots. Under Taliban rule, it was banned, but it has crept back and is now widespread, flourishing also in the cities, including the capital, Kabul, and a common feature of weddings, especially in the north. The bacha dancers are often abused children whose families have rejected them. Their “owners” or “masters” can be single or married men, who keep them in a form of sexual slavery, as concubines. The bachas are usually released at the age of 19, when they can get married and reclaim their status as “male”, though the stigma of having lived as a bacha is hard to overcome. The Afghan authorities and human rights groups are aware of the plight of bacha boys, but seem powerless

By Richard Ammon GlobalGayz.com 11/11/11 I’m in Thailand for the umpteenth time. Last time the big event was was funeral for the king’s sister, a prolonged three-day elaborate ritual of pageantry and pomp. It was covered extensively on Thai television and attended by hundreds of thousands dressed in black. The focal person was His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej, the longest reigning monarch in the world–since 1946. Disturbing to see was his frailty. A special elevator was installed in his sister’s cremation temple that lifted him six steps since he was unable to walk up, where he then lit the funeral pyre. This year his health continues to be very fragile. The Bangkok Post reported that he was unconscious for a while yesterday until doctors discovered an internal bleed and was stabilized. Aside from the personal and intimate aspects of this situation is the looming reality that his much-unloved son will

By Jenni Chang & Lisa Lisa Dazols September 16, 2011 Last year Forbes Magazine named Ricky Reyes as one of the Heroes of Philanthropy in the Asia-Pacific Region. Ricky himself grew up in poverty and worked as a hair sweeper to support his family. He opened his first hair studio in 1970 and grew his business into an empire from his humble shop. Today there are over forty Ricky Reyes salons throughout the country. Ricky also makes it into most homes on his weekly variety television show Gandang Ricky Reyes. Ricky’s non-profit work includes a job training program in the beauty industry and a halfway home for children with cancer. Forbes noted him for feeding for two weeks about 50,000 victims of the Typhoon Ondoy, a national disaster which caused more than $1.09 billion dollars in damage in 2009. We joined him in one of his many homes in the

By Jenni Chang & Lisa Lisa Dazols August 2011 It’s always hard to find lesbians, but it’s especially challenging in Java, Indonesia where ninety percent of the population is Muslim and women fight  against second class status. Amongst the jilbab dressing, we spot a fohawk and meet Ema. A university student who often gets mistaken around town for a boy, Ema challenges ideals of femininity in Indonesia. Ema meets us at a cafe with her girlfriend, and we recognize that the couple is reserved about displaying public affection. But speaking to them and learning about the sacrifices they’ve made for each other, we can tell they are deeply in love. While her girlfriend declines an interview for safety reasons, they’re very enthusiastic to meet with another lesbian couple and share their experience. As young activists and community organizers, we recognize that Ema (photo right) and her partner are the Supergays

Gays Are Not the Only Targets of Persecution in Afghanistan. “It was the beginning of an Afghan love story that flouted dominant traditions of arranged marriages and close family scrutiny, a romance between two teenagers of different ethnicities that tested a village’s tolerance for more modern whims of the heart. The results were delivered with brutal speed. “This month, a group of men spotted the couple riding together in a car, yanked them into the road and began to interrogate the boy and girl. Why were they together? What right had they? An angry crowd of 300 surged around them, calling them adulterers and demanding that they be stoned to death or hanged. “When security forces swooped in and rescued the couple, the mob’s anger exploded. They overwhelmed the local police, set fire to cars and stormed a police station six miles from the center of Herat, raising questions about

By Vivek Divan Gay Bombay Group Dear Mr Ghulam Nabi Azad, Health Minister of India It appears you need a dose of enlightenment since your recent statements on homosexuality smack of either ignorance, misinformation or rank prejudice. I hope that this missive serves that purpose, although I am doubtful. On the other hand, I hope that it shames you. I know what shame is like, having lived most of my life in a world that never understood a core part of me — my sexuality. For your irresponsibility you deserve no part in the governance of a nation that prides itself on tolerance and diversity. Your bosses should dismiss you immediately, but I have a feeling they won’t. It is hard to imagine that you are the health minister of India. I imagine that responsibility entails in its very essence promoting the well-being of all Indians. And not consigning some

Ya gotta love the old guy who said this: “We should not accept religious literature instead of scientific report.” The Delhi High Court bench headed by Chief Justice A P Shah remarked in response to a Solicitor General who cited an article condemning gay sex by quoting the Bible. “These are not scientific reports. These are articles quoting Bible which is a propaganda. Your arguments should be based on scientific reports. Show us scientific reports which justify criminalisation of such acts (gay sex),” the Times of India quoted the Bench. If only other national courts and legislatures would listen to such wisdom we would have societies dominated more by humanistic values than by religious bigotry and irrational political opinions. Carry on Chief Justice A P Shah! And may your words be heard around this troubled gay-hating world. Human development cannot progress forward with one foot stuck in gross ignorance, fear

Intro: There is very little reliable information about gay life in Kazakhstan on the internet, but here is one first-hand report from a former Peace Corps volunteer, Everett Peachey, that offers a small window into this huge former Soviet country. From: Lesbian, Gay & Bisexual US Peace Corps Alumni http://www.lgbrpcv.org/articles/02_04_russia.htm By Everett Peachey August 2009 Regarding theGay Scene in Kazakhstan In Kazakhstan, I found the gay scene to be much more underground and on a much smaller scale than in Russia. Part of this had to do with the relatively small population of Kazakhstan. There were many similarities though. Everyone seemed to know one another, and the same mentality was there; for example, that trust of a partner was more effective than condom use. One area of concern present in Kazakhstan to a greater degree than in Russia is the use of intravenous drugs. The city of Temirtau is especially

Bangkok is a city with many faces, many lives and very diverse styles of living. Here are random images of day and night life in this city of royalty, prosperity and poverty.

The Mekong is one of the world’s great rivers. It is the world’s 10th-longest river and the 7th-longest in Asia. Its estimated length is 4,909 km (3,050 mi) and it drains an area of 795,000 km2 (307,000 sq mi). From the Tibetan Plateau this river runs through China’s Yunnan province, Burma, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam established the Mekong River Commission in 1995 to assist in the management and coordinated use of the Mekong’s resources. This cruise shown in these photos was organized by the Luang Say company.

Intro: A daunting look into the dark life of displaced homosexuals in Phnom Penh, a world the tourists never see. It’s a world of poverty, rejection and hardship that usuallly leads to prostitution and petty crime. For an unknowing westerner, the ‘pretty boy’ on the corner in the evening has a sad tale to tell about his life–if anyone cares to ask.. Terry McCoy takes a look at this underprivileged population. . From: GlobalPost http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/asia/101110/cambodia-homosexual-gay-rights November 12, 2010  By Terry McCoy Phnom Penh, Cambodia Along the train tracks in one of Phnom Penh’s ubiquitous slums, the noise never stops and everything is changing. Longtime residents are fearful that they’ll soon have to move. This place isn’t safe anymore, they say. It isn’t moral anymore. (Photo right: Sok Somnorb stands in the doorway of his room in Beoung Kak 2 community, Phnom Penh, Cambodia.  Image by Vinh Dao/GlobalPost.  More photos can be

The Mekong is one of the world’s great rivers. It is the world’s 10th-longest river and the 7th-longest in Asia. Its estimated length is 4,909 km (3,050 mi) and it drains an area of 795,000 km2 (307,000 sq mi). From the Tibetan Plateau this river runs through China’s Yunnan province, Burma, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam established the Mekong River Commission in 1995 to assist in the management and coordinated use of the Mekong’s resources. This cruise shown in these photos was organized by the Luang Say company.

Luang Prabang is a city located in north central Laos, where the Nam Khan river meets the Mekong River about 425 kilometers (264 mi) north of Vientiane. It is the capital of Luang Prabang Province. The current population of the city is about 103,000. The city was formerly the capital of a kingdom of the same name. Until the communist takeover in 1975, it was the royal capital and seat of government of the Kingdom of Laos. The city is also notable as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The main part of the city consists of four main roads located on a peninsula between the Nam Khan and Mekong rivers. The city is well known for its numerous Buddhist temples and monasteries. Every morning, hundreds of monks from the various monasteries walk through the streets collecting alms. One of the major landmarks in the city is a large steep hill on which

Vientiane is the capital city of Laos, situated in the Mekong River valley. After a period of more than 50 years as a French protectorate, Laos gained independence in 1949. A long civil war ended officially when the communist Pathet Lao movement came to power in 1975 but the protesting between factions continued for several years. Private enterprise has increased since the late 1990s when economic reforms including rapid business licensing were introduced. Laos is still ranked among the lowest countries in terms of economic and political freedom. Eighty percent of the employed practice subsistence agriculture. The country’s ethnic make-up is diverse, with around 55% belonging to the largest ethnic group, the Lao. There is virtually no visible or organized gay community in the country. The current political climate is such that no organized LGBT political or social life can exist. Burma’s social mores about human sexuality have been described