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Pen Points
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America says We're Sick?
Yes, our society is so sick that it can't even see that it IS sick; it will fight tooth and nail to maintain the status quo. It worships at the altar of inertia: "thou shalt change nothing, for all change is evil". The high priests of this religion are the wealthy and powerful of the world, supported by the multitudes immersed in the minutiae of living who can't be roused to action easily, or even think about it. I was one of those until Matthew Shepard came into my life; now I have several activist web sites, a weekly newsletter and am writing a novel about the tragedy of gay love. I think I am making a difference: at least I'm trying. Perhaps, when there are large numbers of people persistently and relentlessly promoting change over a long period, such as gay activism, will change finally come about. Hats off to Dr. Minor for his efforts! Eric Lee Williams Using the System is Often the Slow Route
Why doesn't the gay community realize that we are on a dawn of a religious land slide and unless we put our petty issues and biases against each other aside we will be tortured and beaten and driven insane and into a closet so deep we may never come out, why don't we have groups of people who forcibly go after these people and rescue them? We are not citizens of just one country but we are in every country every ethnic group, which makes it hard for us to have commonality and bonding, but we are a people, and a very rare people, and we must start waking up to the fact that the system, the people, will not help. We must help our people-- for that is what they-- are at any cost.
Shawn India: Homophobic Police Harass AIDS Workers
These activists appear to have been targeted by the police solely for their work with the homosexual community. They are prisoners of conscience because they have been arrested solely for their activity to promote the prevention of AIDS and the right to health. The organization sent a letter to the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh concerning the reportedly arbitrary interference of Uttar Pradesh Police officers with the lawful activities of two organizations raising AIDS/HIV awareness among male homosexuals in Lucknow. In particular, Amnesty International is concerned by reports that police have arrested four members of those organizations. On 7 July police arrested Bharosa Trust Program Manager Parmeshwar Nair, a worker of the same organization Mohhamad Shahid, the Naz Foundation International (NFI) director, Arif Jafar, and another office worker of the same organisation, Sudhees Kumar, charging them with "Punishment of criminal conspiracy" and "Unnatural offences" under Articles 120 B and 377 of the Indian Penal Code. On the same day police raided the offices of the two organizations and seized materials they considered as pornographic, but the activists said these were used to raise safer sex awareness. While in police custody the four men were reportedly severely beaten with batons. They are presently in judicial custody in Lucknow District Jail; their application for release on bail was turned down by the judge without giving specific grounds for his decision. They are now appealing to the Uttar Pradesh High Court. The lawyer defending the four detainees was reportedly threatened with arrest by the police on 9 July during the search of the office of Bharosa Trust which was taking place without the required search warrant from the court. He was also told not to discuss this case with other human rights activists in India or abroad. The Government of India has recently publicly acknowledged, at the United Nations General Assembly Special Session on HIV/AIDS (UNGASS), that lesbians and gay men constitute a marginalised community and that they are particularly vulnerable to HIV infection. The Indian authorities should now go one step further and ensure that subordinate state bodies act in accordance with the government's international stands and national plans of action.
Amensty International India Programme Office |
The murder of Matthew Shepard made this reader take notice of the inhumanity in the United States and across the world 
Four human rights defenders, arrested solely for their lawful AIDS
prevention activities, should be immediately and unconditionally released
and the action of the Uttar Pradesh Police should be promptly and
impartially investigated.
© 1997-2002 BEI