`Sin City` Races NCPO to Clean up Its Act
Bangkok Post - Pattaya, Bangkok, 8/31/2014
Pattaya officials are racing to clean up the resort`s beaches and vice spots to try to shake off the ‘sin city’ tag and prevent the military stepping in as they have done in Phuket and Hua Hin. First among the targets of city officials and the new police chief are chair renters on the beach and street-walking prostitutes. Transgender sex workers claim they have already been targeted in a wave of police crackdowns. Dum, a beach chair operator in front of a large shopping mall, said he was tidying up his plot and strictly following the regulations. ‘I am scared the NCPO will come and clean up the beach like they did to Phuket and Hua Hin. I have no back-up plan, this is the only career I have.’
Court Grants Man Divorce Over Wife’s Demand For Excessive Sex
The Indian Express - Mumbai, India, 8/31/2014
A man, who sought separation from his wife alleging that she was aggressive and autocratic with an insatiable appetite for sex, was granted divorce by a family court here. ‘Due to respondent’s (wife’s) non-appearance before the court, the petitioner’s (husband’s) evidence remains unchallenged on record. Hence this court has no option but to accept his evidence as it is and he is entitled to a decree of divorce as prayed,’ Principal Judge of family court, Laxmi Rao ruled in a recent order.
Sridhar Rangayan`s `Purple Skies` Looks at The Lives of Lesbian Women in India
Daily News and Analysis, India, 8/30/2014
Sridhar Rangayan`s documentary Purple Skies-Voices of Indian lesbians, bisexuals and transmen is making the rounds of film festivals worldwide, Gaylaxy magazine has reported. Rangayan`s film focuses on the lives of lesbians, bisexuals and transmen in India. ‘Purple Skies weaves together stories of pain, trauma, hope and happiness of lesbian, bisexual and trans (LBT) persons to offer an evocative, endearing tapestry of contemporary Indian LBT lives - sometime sad, sometime anguished, sometime dreamy and sometime hopeful,’ the film description reads. The documentary, produced by the Public Service Broadcasting Trust (PSBT) and Solaris Films, is set to be screened at the Open Frame Film Festival and Forum organised by the PSBT.
Dolly Monitored by Surabaya Mayor Through CCTV
The Jakarta Post - Jakarta, Indonesia, 8/29/2014
Surabaya Mayor Tri Rismaharini said that she would continue to monitor the Dolly red-light district - which has been closed since June - from her office via several closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras. According to the data from the city’s social agency, at the time of closure, 1,020 sex workers and 311 pimps depended on Dolly for their livelihoods. To overcome the impact of the closure, Salim said that his ministry had allocated Rp 8 billion (US$676,859) to be disbursed to sex workers and pimps, with each individual receiving Rp 5 million.
Activists Urge Lawmakers to Stand Against Anti-Gay Prejudice
South China Morning Post - Hong Kong, China, 8/28/2014
International activists have urged Hong Kong`s policymakers to take a stand against anti-gay prejudice and provide equal rights for sexual minorities - even if same-sex marriage is not yet an option. The government needs look no further than Taiwan, said one activist at a Hong Kong symposium on sexual minorities` rights. The activists are attending Hong Kong`s first international symposium on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) rights that begins August 28, 2014 at the Chinese University and was jointly organised by the Equal Opportunities Commission, the European Union`s local office and the university`s gender research centre.
Almost NT$1bn Project to Boost Birthrate
Taipei Times, Taiwan, 8/28/2014
The Health Promotion Administration on August 27, 2014 unveiled a long-awaited subsidy scheme for couples seeking assisted reproductive technology treatment, as part of its efforts to salvage the nation’s dismal fertility rate. ‘The nation is faced with two grave challenges: a fast-aging population and a dwindling birth rate. According to the UN’s world fertility patterns report last year, Taiwan’s fertility rate ranked at the bottom among 193 nations,’ Minister of Health and Welfare Chiu Wen-ta told a press conference in Taipei.
Indian Schoolgirls Commit Suicide Over Sexual Harassment: Report
Daily Times - Rohtak, India, 8/27/2014
Two teenage girls in northern India committed suicide by drinking fruit juice laced with poison and left notes saying they were being stalked and harassed by a group of youths. Two suicide notes, written by the girls and found at their desks at the education centre, said they were being stalked and sexually harassed by a group of young men on motorcycles, police said. In their suicide note the teenagers warned that more girls would commit suicide if the rise in the number of cases of harassment and stalking against girls and women were not addressed.
Third Gender Fight Social Stigma by Donating Blood
The Times of India - Chennai, India, 8/27/2014
‘It is a great feeling to know that someone out there might get a new lease of life with my blood,’ said 28-year-old Rambha, a transgender from the city who was one of the donors at the blood donation camp organised by Women and Children (WCF) Hospitals on the occasion of `Women Equality Day` on August 26, 2014. Dr D Rajasekar, chairman and managing director of Women and Children Foundation (WCF) Hospitals that organised the event pointed out that there should not be any discrimination against transgender provided they are medically fit as per the government approved blood safety guidelines to become a blood donor. Rambha pointed out that though social stigma still persists, there has been considerable change in the general outlook towards the third gender.
Youths at Biggest Risk of Getting HIV
Bangkok Post - Bangkok, Thailand, 8/26/2014
Young people are increasingly at risk of contracting HIV and AIDS and sexually transmitted infections (STIs), a study released by the United Nations Fund for Children said. According to the study, conducted by Thammasat University and Unicef, around 70% of new cases of sexually transmitted infections occur in young people. The chief of HIV and AIDS for UNICEF Thailand, Robert Gass, said the main factors leading to HIV infection in young people were a lack of life experience causing poor decision making, along with alcohol and drug use. The study was conducted among 2,000 people aged 15-24 early last year in Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Songkhla and Ubon Ratchathani.
Gender Equality Group Launches Fundraiser For Sexual Assault Care Centre
Straits Times, Singapore, 8/25/2014
Gender equality advocacy group Aware is raising funds to support its new Sexual Assault Care Centre. It said that it aims to raise $30,000 through a six-week fundraising campaign (http://sacc.causevox.com/) ending on October 10, 2014, to continue to provide free drop-in services at the centre. These include a dedicated social worker for women who suffer sexual assaults, legal advice, therapeutic counselling and a trained befriender who can accompany them to the police station, hospital or court.
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