IGLHRC targets Guangzhou Public Security Bureau

The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission has set its sights on the Guangzhou Public Security Bureau in China over its harassment of gay men.

IGLHRC expressed “dismay at the repeated acts of arbitrary detention and harassment of the police towards HIV prevention outreach workers and men suspected of being gay.”

In one incident, in August, the police tried to eject around 100 gay men from Renmin Gongyuan People’s Park, claiming they were harassing straight people and committing petty crimes. In an unusual move, the gays resisted and the police eventually left.

“The raids and patterns of harassment in Guangzhou discriminate against individuals by targeting them on the basis of their perceived sexual orientation,” IGLHRC said. “They also threaten access to the limited space that the gay and bisexual men of Guangzhou can access. Social spaces, such as public parks, are sites in which … LGBT people build community and promote HIV education and prevention. These venues are particularly important since private space is less accessible to many Chinese gay men and lesbians, many of whom live with family.”

ILGHRC launched a letter-writing campaign to police chief Wu Sha. For details, see tinyurl.com/gayguang.

By Rex Wockner


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