Fridae

Rice Rhapsody will open in Taipei and Singapore this week after the Singapore Censorship Board deliberated for more than a month over the film's gay theme. Fridae speaks with veteran actress Sylvia Chang and writer/director Kenny Bi to find out why he choose to set the film in Singapore.

This week, we chat with Dr Mohamad Mahat, the co-founder of the Asian Marching Boys in Sydney, who left Malaysia in 1993 after being photographed by tabloids after police raided the gay bar he was in.

How can you tell if your foreign partner is in it for the long haul or is he going to take off sooner than you could book an air ticket online? Hidesato Sakakibara asks some pertinent questions to help you access the situation.

A German zoo's attempt to turn gay penguins straight has proved to be unsuccessful; in New Zealand, Christian protesters made themselves heard at Auckland's Big Gay Out and health experts divided on implications of N.Y. AIDS case as some fear the announcement may fuel panic.

A virulent strain of HIV which health experts fear could be impossible to treat has been discovered in the United States; strain also associated with rapid onset of AIDS.

The Communist Party of the Philippines officiated the first gay marriage between two male members of the New People's Army, Sweden discusses the issue of gay marriage while Fiji's will review its anti-gay laws.

Welcome to Fridae's monthly advice column where Alvin dispenses his own unique brand of advice for those who need it oh-so-badly.

Following Dr Balaji Sadasivan's fiercely debated comments last November that gay men's unsafe sexual practices were the biggest cause of concern, stakeholders organised a meeting at the 4th AIDS conference to discuss the issues relevant to MSMs.

Are most gay Asian men in America incurable potato queens because they suffer from a strong inferiority complex? Hidesato Sakakibara asserts the importance of being free to choose by taste rather than by any inferior feelings we have about ourselves.

Taiwan has passed a new law which requires taiwan hotels, saunas to offer condoms to patrons; gay rights groups in Taipei have challenged a legislator to a debate over remarks about city budget while Canada has unveiled draft legislation to permit gay marriage.