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Thousands Attend Pride in Cape Town

March 7, 2010 by Jason Shaw · Leave a Comment 

The streets of South Africa’s Cape Town were packed with lesbians  and gay men on Saturday as thousands took part in a loud and colourful gay pride match, calling for  more tolerance in Africa, which is one of the world’s most homophobic regions.

Thousands of men, women and children joined the parade through South Africa’s most cosmoplitan and accepting city – Cape Town.  Some of the banners and placards the marchers held up included ”Your hate won’t make me straight,”     “I was born gay,”     “Jesus says ‘love your neighbour’,” and “Hate is unAfrican.”

The marchers also  denounced the  proposed anti gay laws in Uganda that could possibly mean the death penaty imposed on gay men.   The also citisied  the jailing of two men from  nearby Malawi who held the nation’s first public same-sex wedding.

South Africa, is becoming more and more popular as a gay tourist destination since the  demise of apartheid in 1994 and the more librliastion of the countries laws.  South Africa is the most gay  friendly of all the African nations,  gay marriage has been legal since 2006, gay adoption has been allowed since 2002.



Jason Shaw.
GayAgenda.com’s UK Correspondent.



Jason’s own personal blog is The Seafront Diaries!


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South African Wins World Gay Pageant

February 17, 2010 by Jason Shaw · Leave a Comment 

A South African man has won the 2010 Mr Gay World pageant in Oslo Norway.   The 28 year old beat  rivals from as far away as  Australia, Hong Kong, China and Spain.

Charl Van den Berg  whose  28, who runs a restaurant in Cape Town, South Africa  won the competition on Sunday, after four days of heats that finished with a walk down a fashion runaway in an Oslo nightclub dressed in skimpy swimwear and various costumes and outfits.
Organisers say the ‘global’ competition is aimed at “finding a leader who can take on the responsibility of being a spokesman for the community and who can also speak out on equality and human rights on the world stage,”

Xiaodai Muyi, 26, from China and who took fourth place, competed despite Beijing’s attempts to prevent him doing so.  The Chinese authorities blocked China’s own first gay pageant, in which contestants were vying for the right to represent China at Mr Gay World, last month,  they also tried to prevent the 26 year old from travelling to the event in Oslo.    Xiaodai’s identity had been kept secret in the run-up to the competition in which some 20 men from around the world vied for the Mr Gay World title.    Homosexuality was a crime in China until 1997 and it was officially considered a mental illness until 2001. Since then, however, an increasing number of visible gay and lesbian events has taken place.
In a recent interview  Muyi said that he wanted to compete despite the very real possibility of facing the wrath of the Chinese government for his participation in the gay event upon his return home to China. He  said he hoped his  appearance  would inspire others to do the same. “I think that by participating in this competition I will encourage hundreds of thousands of Chinese gays to stand up and come out of the closet,”
Australia’s Byron Adu, 25, who works for the Australian government, was in second place followed by Rick Dean Twombley, 33, a dancer from Hong Kong while Spanish entrant Sergio Lara, a 26-year-old psychologist, came fifth out of the 30 finalists from all over the world.
The first duty of the newly appointed Worldwide Mr. Gay will be to fly to the Canadian host city of the 2010 Winter Olympics, Vancouver. As well as taking part in the Olympic festivities, the 28 year old Van De Berg will be an ambassador for equality and diversity at Pride House – a safe space that brings visibility to queer people in sport.
Jason Shaw, Brighton, England.
GayAgenda.com’s United Kingdom Correspondent.

Gay’s May Not Face Death Penalty in Uganda

January 9, 2010 by Jason Shaw · Leave a Comment 

Jason Shaw reports

It’s being reported that gay people in Uganda, may not now face the death penalty after president Yoweri Museveni, bowed to international pressure and opposed the new legislation which would have seen gay people face sentenced to hard labour and death.

The Ugandan President told colleagues that the bill is too ‘harsh’ and this week encouraged the ruling National Resistance Movement Party to reverse the death sentence part of the law.

In the proposed bill, there is a section that states “anyone convicted of a homosexual act, which includes touching someone of the same sex with the intent of committing a homosexual act, would face life imprisonment” President Museveni has not made it clear, where he stands on that part of the law yet, although it’s likely he does, given his previous stance on homosexuality.


This bill promotes hatred and fear in the African nation and could seriously set back the strong efforts that have been made in combating HIV/AIDS in the country. Perhaps even halting aid being given to the country and those that suffer with AIDS. It’s a bill that increases the prejudice against homosexuality which is already strong in the country. There are many cases of discrimination, hatred and on occasion mob violence. Being gay in Uganda is difficult and sometimes dangerous, however, the law also has draft provisions that could also mean those Ugandan’s living overseas could be extradited if they engage in homosexual activity.

“The death penalty is likely to be removed,” James Nsaba Buturo, Uganda’s minister of state for ethics and integrity, said in a press release. “The president doesn’t believe in killing gays. I also don’t believe in it. I think gays can be counseled and they stop the bad habit.”


“Although the president is against some parts of the bill, the bill has to stay. It is not allowed in African culture. We have to protect the children in schools who are being recruited into homosexual activities.” claims the ruling party spokeswoman Mary Karoro Okurut, who supports the hateful bill.

Lesbian and gay rights are very limited on the African continental, homosexuality is punishable by death in 3 countries currently (Sudan, Nigeria and Mauritania) and illegal in no less than 38 other nations. South Africa is the most liberal and allows gay marriage.

Jason Shaw,  Brighton,  England.

Portugal Ready to Leagalize Gay Marriage

November 9, 2009 by James Hipps · 2 Comments 

According to sources, José Sócrates, the Prime Minister of Portugal, has been busy developing a new government after the elections in September. Part of that new government is equality for the country’s LGBT citizens. On October 23, Sócrates stated that legalizing same-sex marriage will be one of the new leadership’s first changes.

According to a post on PortugalGay.pt:

“The measure is part of the official program of the party and according to government sources, the move will be done as soon as the government is complete.” (Complete as in completely formed).

Portuguese lawmakers from all parties are in favor of the move and support marriage equality, leading to the belief the bill will pass with ease.

Portugal has recognizes “de facto unions” for both opposite and same-sex couples since 2001, but much like civil unions, they only grant limited rights to couples, so the lawmakers feel it’s time to even the playing field.

Portugal would become the nineth country to legalize same-sex marriage, joining the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Canada, South Africa, Norway, Sweden and Nepal in offering its LGBT citizens marriage equality.

Gang-Rape Killer of Lesbian Footballer Gets Life

September 22, 2009 by James Hipps · Leave a Comment 

A man was jailed for life today for the murder and gang rape of a lesbian South African international footballer.

Themba Mvubu, 24, from Kwathema, was found guilty of murdering, robbing and being an accessory to the rape of 31-year-old Eudy Simelane.

Activists at the magistrates court in Delmas, Mpumalanga province, hailed the judgment as “extremely important” in drawing attention to cases of murder and so-called “corrective rape” against lesbians in South Africa.

Simelane was one of the first women to live openly as a lesbian in Kwa Thema township, near Johannesburg. A keen footballer since childhood, she played for the South African women’s team and worked as a coach and referee. She hoped to serve as a line official in the 2010 men’s World Cup in South Africa.

Read more at: Guardian UK!

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