Fridae

Fridae tracks down Yang Yang, the organiser of the second Beijing International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival, to be held this weekend and finds out the difficulties of organising a gay festival in the Chinese capital in an exclusive interview.

Gay groups in the US are disappointed with the newly elected Pope as they see him as the church's most outspoken foe of equal rights. In Hong Kong, police raided a gay party last Saturday as Beijing gears up for its second gay and lesbian film festival this weekend.

Many gay Catholics worldwide are reflecting with mixed emotions on the life and legacy of Pope John Paul II who had staunchly opposed gay rights and same-sex marriage.

Sexualities, Genders, And Rights In Asia: 1st International Conference Of Asian Queer Studies; 7 -9 July 2005 at Ambassador Hotel, Bangkok.

Last week, the India Supreme Court issued notice to the government questioning the validity of laws which criminalises gay sex acts; in the US, Kansas has become the 18th US state to approve anti-gay marriage amendment while an Aussie tourist was jailed over gay sex in Fiji.

The US-based Human Rights Watch has accused the Ugandan government of falling under the influence of US Christian conservatives and placing millions of young Ugandans at risk of contracting HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.

In Thailand, organisers of the Phuket Gay Festival are appealing for visitors to return after the tsunami disaster last year while a suggestion to educate primary school students about homosexuality has outraged the Thai public; in the US, a gay Christian group is set to confront Focus On The Family.

Hong Kong will be asked what it thinks about homosexuals. Tim Cribb reports the survey will determine Hong Kong's direction on crucial gay issues, from discrimination to same-sex marriage and age of consent.

A total of 1,529 valid responses were collected in the second survey among men who have sex with men (MSM) in Singapore.

Fridae will hold its first ever party in Bangkok at the ultra-chic Bed Supperclub on April 15, 2005.