World
Out in the World: LGBTQ news from Europe and Asia
Malaysian prime minister reiterated opposition to LGBTQ rights at UN
AUSTRALIA
A group has petitioned the Australian Human Rights Commission for an exemption to hold āLesbians Born Female onlyā events that exclude transgender people at the Victorian Pride Center for the next five years.
Lesbian Action Group Melbourne, wrote in their petition to apply for the exemption that the group, exclude āheterosexual, bisexual and gay males, heterosexual and bisexual females, transgender people and queer plus people.ā
The Sydney Star Observer, Australiaās largest LGBTQ media outlet, reported that the event would be held to celebrate International Lesbian Day at the Victorian Pride Center on Oct. 15, 2023.
Under Australian codes the AHRC is empowered under Section 44 of the Sex Discrimination Act of 1984 (Cth) to grant temporary exemptions for up to five years from the provisions of the anti-discrimination law.
According to the Star-Observer, the group said it was set up to promote and organize events for ālesbian born females āwithout the fear of being hauled before the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal, as we have in the past and told our exclusive lesbian born female events are illegal and having to cancel them.āĀ
The group claimed that over the past two decades, they were able to āorganize and hold private lesbian meetings and gatherings over these past 20 years to avoid any more challenges by the transgender community.ā The application then went on to allege that ālesbians who publicly speak out about lesbian rights are also sacked from their jobs, ridiculed and threatened with all kinds of abuse.ā
Basketball star suspended over anti-gay remarks
Australian NBL professional basketball star Corey Webster was suspended for two games after he posted homophobic remarks to his X/Twitter social media account. In the now deleted tweets, Webster replying to a post that asked: āWhatās the first thing that comes to mind when you see this flag,ā accompanied by the LGBTQ Rainbow Pride flag,ā said: āmental illness.ā
After Perth Wildcats fans and followers started calling out him for the blatant homophobia Webster posted a follow-up that read in all caps: āPROTECT THE CHILDREN,ā and put his social media profile on private.
The team reacted issuing an apology and also released an apology from Webster. In his statement the player said:
āWhile it certainly wasnāt my intent, I understand the hurt my comments have caused and I am sincerely sorry for this. It wasnāt how I intended my comments to be perceived and I will take a break from social media and use that time to better educate myself on the impact comments such as this can make on individuals I may have offended.ā
Perth Wildcats team owner Richard Simkiss said: āWe are really disappointed in these comments and have made this clear to Corey. They donāt reflect our values, and we have committed to working with Corey to help educate him about the harm such comments can bring. As a community driven club, we stand for inclusiveness and have strongly supported the NBLās Pride Round. We look forward to promoting this initiative again in the upcoming season. Our values are clear ā we want to bring people together in a positive way and we understand our responsibility as leaders in the community to live these values both on and off the court.ā
VIETNAM
A decidedly queer subculture import from the U.S. that gained rapid popularity this vibrant southern Vietnamese metropolis is providing a safe haven for gay and trans youth.Ā
Al Jazeera contributor Xuan-Tung Le reported during a recent event, a catwalk for would-be models with fiery dance-off battles, as well as an emotional celebration of kinship between Vietnamās queer people ā all rolled into a single evening of deep connections for trans people especially.
Le notes that not to be confused with ballroom dancing, which evolved from the heterosexual courtship tradition of European aristocrats, ballroom culture emerged in the 1960s among marginalized Black and Latino queer people in the U.S.
Gathering at a āballā function, queer people āwalkā to show off their talents in dancing, lip-syncing, performing and catwalk modelling as a way to both compete on the night and, more broadly, transcend the everyday realities of gender identities, occupational roles and social status assigned in society.
Viral videos of voguing battles have also been helped by the digital power of YouTube and TikTok algorithms, giving people around the world access to the dance form Le added.
āBallroom is more than dancing,ā Minerva Sun Mizrahi, using a stage name preferring that their real name not be used, told Al Jazeera.
āHere, people can vogue, do runway walk, or simply look and act straight-passing ā all are considered talents,ā Minerva said.
āIt is a space to empower queer people.ā
Another queer performer told Al Jazeera that social acceptance of transgender people also lags behind in Vietnam, even in Saigon where gay men and women enjoy relative acceptance in society. Naomi Sun, also using a preferred stage name, told Al Jazeera: āThat is why ballroom events are so unique, as they are one of the few safe spaces in Saigon where trans women can just ‘let loose and have fun,’ā Sun said.
āYou donāt have to do anything to your body or take hormones; just dress up as a fem queen [which is the ballroom slang for a trans woman], go there, and live your dream as a fem queen,ā she said. āItās fine! Thatās how ballroom is.ā
Related: Vietnamās “ballroom” culture: A safe space to celebrate trans people (link)
MALAYSIA
In an interview with CNNās Christiane Amanpour, Malaysiaās Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim says Malaysia will never recognize LGBTQ rights. Recently prison sentences were threatened for selling rainbow watches. āI wouldnāt defend that,ā Ibrahim told the veteran journalist. He says heād like to see things change, but must respect the consensus of the people.
Anwar said that as prime minister, he has to respect the consensus of Malaysians and that they do not accept public displays of LGBTQ (people and issues.) āThe Muslims, non-Muslims, Christians, Hindus or Buddhists, they have a consensus in the country. They do not accept this (LGBTQ+),ā he said. However, he said while there is a need to exercise some degree of tolerance, harassment has to be avoided.
UNITED KINGDOM
A 17-year-old teenage boy from South Wales has been publicly named after being convicted and sentenced on Sept. 21, for a homophobic and racist vandalism crime spree in South Wales and Cardiff.
Haynes and a second 15-year-old male accomplice carried out several racially and homophobically charged counts of criminal damage across South Wales, including extremist Nazi graffiti on a Windrush mural in Port Talbot where the teen was living at the time.
British LGBTQ media outlet PinkNewsUK reported that just hours after the mural, depicting local beloved nurse Donna Campbell and her mother Lydie, was complete, it was daubed with swastikas, the words āNazi zone,ā and a racial slur.
The presiding justice, Jeremy Baker, sent the teen to jail for one year and seven months and ordered the former Royal Air Force Cadet to an additional one yearās probation.
According to Sky News, Counter terrorism police inĀ WalesĀ last year began investigating the two teenagers in connection with āseveral offenses of racially and homophobically aggravated criminal damage.ā
A smoke bomb was also rolled into the Queer Emporium, an LGBTQ business in Cardiff city center.
The 15-year-old, from Tonyrefail, South Wales, appeared at Cardiff Youth Court and pleaded guilty on Aug. 15 to one charge of criminal damage and four charges of racially aggravated criminal damage. He was given community service for one year, and probation for two additional years and ordered to pay Ā£100 ($122.42) compensation to the Queer Emporium.
In the case of Hayes, Baker said the teen had āessentially became self-radicalizedā and held āentrenchedā racist, antisemitic and homophobic views.
āI am satisfied that not only did you hold entrenched racist, antisemitic and homophobic views at the time of the commission of these offenses, but that these are views which you have not genuinely disavowed,ā the judge told him at his sentencing. āIt is apparent that you were not someone who limited your behavior to the expression of your views online, but were prepared to put some of those views into action,ā he added.
The judge also noted, āIt is of particular concern that not only had you asserted that one of your goals in life was to kill someone … but you had already carried out research as to the availability of one of the components for constructing a gun.ā
According to Counter Terrorism Policing Wales Detective Chief Inspector Andrew Williams who spoke at the sentencing:
āFor the older boy in particular, it became evident that he was also involved in the online distribution of extreme right-wing material, which clearly fell into the space governed by terrorism legislation,ā he said.
āThe offences were particularly abhorrent in nature and understandably caused upset to many people, both within the communities the boys targeted, and beyond.
āThe sentencing today concludes the investigation and enables professionals to work intensively with them in the hope that they can lead far more productive lives in their respective futures.ā
The court battle over to overturn the UK Secretary of State for Scotland Alister Jackās veto block of the Gender Recognition Reform ended this week with a ruling by Judge Lady Shona Haldane of the Court of Session in Edinburgh not expected for āsome timeā according to a statement from the court.
Haldane said after the judicial review concluded a day earlier than expected ā that she will take āsome timeā to reach her decision on the matter. She added she write her opinion following what she described as a āunique, very interesting and challenging case.ā
The Gender Recognition Reform bill introduced by the Scottish government to Parliament last spring was passed in a final 86-39 vote days before this past Christmas 2022. The sweeping reform bill modifies the Gender Recognition Act, signed into law in 2004, by allowing trans Scots to gain legal recognition without the need for a medical diagnosis.
The measure further stipulates that age limit for legal recognition is lowered to 16.
Jack had released a statement indicating that with the backing of 10 Downing St., he would use a Section 35 order under the Scotland Act to block the kingās signature which is referred to as royal assent.
Under Section 35 of the Scotland Act, UK ministers can stop a bill getting royal assent. Jack can do so if he is of the opinion that a Scottish Parliament bill would modify laws reserved to Westminster and have an āadverse effectā on how those laws apply.
PinkNewsUK reported the legislation itself was not discussed, with the case instead focusing on whether or not the Jack had the legal right to veto the bill.
Whoever loses the case, when Haldane issues her ruling, will have the right to appeal the outcome at the Court of Session Inner House. Whoever loses that appeal will have the option to take the case to the Supreme Court in London.
This means, regardless of the result, the political and legal battle could go on for months, or even years.
Additional reporting from the Star Observer, Al Jazeera, CNN, Sky News and PinkNewsUK
Australia
Australian LGBTQ rights group issues US travel advisory
Equality Australia warns transgender, nonbinary people of ‘serious risks’
An LGBTQ rights group in Australia has issued a travel advisory for transgender and nonbinary people who plan to visit the U.S.
Equality Australia on April 14 posted the advisory to its website that states the U.S. government’s policy on visas and Electronic System for Travel Authorization or ESTA “appears to be” the following:
ā¢ To use the term ābiological sexā
ā¢ To only use the gender marker recorded at a personās birth, even if this differs from their gender
ā¢ That valid foreign passports with an ‘X’ gender marker and a valid visa (if needed) may continue to be admitted, however this is contingent upon satisfying inspection of their admissibility by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer at the port of entry
ā¢ That any previously issued, valid visa may remain current until its expiration date and the visa holder does not need to apply for a new visa with an amended gender marker until the current visa expires (it is unclear whether this applies to ESTAs)
ā¢ That new visas will only be issued under the gender marker recorded for the applicant at birth (it is unclear whether this applies to ESTA applications, although only ‘M’ and ‘F’ gender marker options are available for ESTA applications)
ā¢ That if consular officers assessing visa applications become aware an application does not contain the gender marker recorded at the applicantās birth, they should assess additional evidence (such as previous travel records, although the scope is unclear), and/or conduct interviews and
ā¢ That where individuals are not using the gender marker recorded at their birth, consular officers should consider classifying the application as procuring a visa through material misrepresentation or fraud, which results in a lifetime bar from the U.S.
President Donald Trump shortly after he took office on Jan. 20 issued an executive order that bans the State Department from issuing passports with āXā gender markers. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in response to directive ordered State Department personnel to āsuspend any application requesting an āXā sex marker and do not take any further action pending additional guidance from the department.ā A federal judge in Boston on April 18 issued a temporary injunction against the Trump-Vance administration’s directive.
Equality Australia says its advisory is “relevant if you are traveling to the U.S.” and fall under the following criteria:
ā¢ Hold a passport with a gender ‘X’ marker
ā¢ Have identity documents with gender markers different to those assigned to you at birth, or where other relevant details (such as your name) have been changed
ā¢ Have gender markers in your identity documents that do not match your gender expression
ā¢ Have a track record of LGBTIQ+ activism or other political activity.
“Travel to the U.S. carries serious risks that should be considered before planning any travel, particularly if you fall under one of the above categories,” reads the advisory.
Germany, Denmark, Finland, and the Netherlands are among the countries that have issued travel advisories for trans and nonbinary people who plan to visit the U.S.
WorldPride is scheduled to take place in D.C. from May 17-June 8.
InterPride, the organization that coordinates WorldPride events, on March 12 issued its own travel advisory for trans and nonbinary people who want to travel to the U.S. Egale Canada, one of Canadaās largest LGBTQ advocacy organizations, in February announced its members will not attend WorldPride and any other event in the U.S. because of the Trump-Vance administrationās policies.
Pope Francis died on Monday at his official residence at the Vatican. He was 88.
Cardinal Kevin Farrell, the Vatican camerlengo, said Francis passed away at Casa Santa Marta at 7:35 a.m. local time (1:35 a.m. ET.)
“His entire life was dedicated to the service of the Lord and of his church,” said Farrell. “He taught us to live the values of the Gospel with fidelity, courage, and universal love, especially in favor of the poorest and most marginalized. With immense gratitude for his example as a true disciple of the Lord Jesus, we commend the soul of Pope Francis to the infinite merciful love of the one and triune God.”
Francis, a Jesuit who was previously known as Jorge Mario Bergoglio, was born in Buenos Aires to Italian immigrant parents in 1936. He became archbishop of the Argentine capital in 1998.
Pope John Paul II in 2001 appointed him cardinal. The College of Cardinals in 2013 elected Francis to succeed Pope Benedict XVI after he resigned.
Francis vehemently opposed Argentina’s marriage equality law that then-President Cristina FernĆ”ndez de Kirchner signed in 2010. Francis as pope backed civil unions for gays and lesbians and in 2023 said priests can bless same-sex couples.
Francis in 2023 said laws that criminalize homosexuality are “unjust.” He appointed Robert McElroy, an LGBTQ-friendly cardinal from San Diego, as the new archbishop of Washington.
The pontiff in 2015 met with a group of gay, transgender, and HIV-positive prisoners in the Italian city of Naples. A Vatican charity in 2020 gave money to a group of trans sex workers in Italy who were struggling to survive during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Francis last October met with a group of trans and intersex Catholics and LGBTQ allies at the Vatican. GLAAD President Sarah Kate Ellis and Juan Carlos Cruz, a gay Chilean man who is a clergy sex abuse survivor, are among those who also met with Francis during his papacy.
Church teachings on homosexuality and gender identity, however, did not change.
“From the early months of his papacy when he uttered the now-iconic ‘Who am I to judge?’ in response to a question about accepting gay priests, through numerous affirming pastoral messages to individual LGBTQ+ people, to his support for civil unions, and his condemnation of criminalization laws, Pope Francis has changed the church irreversibly by allowing people to see how their Catholic faith requires acceptance and equality,” said Francis DeBernardo, executive director of New Ways Ministry, a Mount Rainier, Md., based LGBTQ Catholic advocacy organization, in a statement.
DignityUSA Executive Director Marianne Duddy-Burke met Francis in 2023.
The group in a statement acknowledged the pontiff’s “legacy on LGBTQ+ issues is complicated,” noting “even with the recognition of so many positive words and actions, church teachings and even some recent Vatican documents remain problematic.ā DignityUSA President Meli Barber nevertheless praised Francis.
āWe also recognize that Pope Francis has raised awareness of LGBTQ+ issues in our church in truly unprecedented ways,” said Barber. “He spoke about us using our own terms and made a point of being seen meeting with LGBTQ+ people frequently. This sent a message of recognition and inclusion we never experienced from the Vatican before.ā
Pope’s legacy is ‘mixed’
Activists in Argentina and around the world also mourned Francis.
“We mourn his death and embrace the people who are suffering today because of his passing,” LGBT Federation of Argentina President MarĆa Rachid told the Washington Blade.
Dindi Tan, national president of LGBT Pilipinas in the Philippines, on her Facebook page wrote Francis “was unafraid to challenge age-old dogmas and to ‘rattle’ the cage.” Pedro Julio Serrano, president of the Puerto Rico LGBTQ+ Federation, said Francis was an “ally of equity, humanity and dignity of LGBTQ+ people, not only during his pontificate, but throughout his life.”
Peter Tatchell, a long-time LGBTQ activist from the U.K. who is director of the Peter Tatchell Foundation, in a statement acknowledged Francis’s “more compassionate tone towards sexual minorities” that includes blessings for same-sex couples. Tatchell, nevertheless, pointed out the Vatican under Francis’s papacy continued to oppose marriage equality and trans rights.
“The Catholic Church remains a force for discrimination and suffering,” said Tatchell. “Under his leadership, the Vatican continued to oppose same-sex marriage and trans rights. Catholic bishops lobbied against the decriminalization of homosexuality in many parts of the world. The Vatican still upholds the homophobic edicts of the Catechism, which denounces the sexual expression of same-sex love as a ‘grave depravity’ and ‘intrinsically disordered.’ Francis’s legacy is, therefore, a mixed one ā offering some progress but leaving deep-rooted inequalities largely intact.”
Vance met with Francis on Easter Sunday
Francis earlier this year spent more than a month in a Rome hospital after he developed double pneumonia.
He met with Vice President JD Vance at the Vatican on Easter Sunday, hours before his death.
The pope had previously criticized the Trump-Vance administration over its immigration policies.
“I just learned of the passing of Pope Francis,” said Vance on X after the Vatican announced Francis’s death. “My heart goes out to the millions of Christians all over the world who loved him.”
I just learned of the passing of Pope Francis. My heart goes out to the millions of Christians all over the world who loved him.
I was happy to see him yesterday, though he was obviously very ill. But Iāll always remember him for the below homily he gave in the very early daysā¦
ā JD Vance (@JDVance) April 21, 2025
Argentine President Javier Milei, who previously criticized Francis, mourned him in a statement he posted to X. Milei also announced Argentina will observe seven days of mourning.
“It is with profound sorrow that I learned this sad morning that Pope Francis, Jorge Bergoglio, passed away today and is now resting in peace,” said Milei. “Despite differences that seem minor today, having been able to know him in his goodness and wisdom was a true honor for me.”
“As president, as an Argentine, and, fundamentally, as a man of faith, I bid farewell to the Holy Father and stand with all of us who meet today with this sad news,” he added.
ADIĆS
Con profundo dolor me entero esta triste maƱana que el Papa Francisco, Jorge Bergoglio, falleciĆ³ hoy y ya se encuentra descansando en paz. A pesar de diferencias que hoy resultan menores, haber podido conocerlo en su bondad y sabidurĆa fue un verdadero honor para mĆ.ā¦ pic.twitter.com/3dPPFoNWBr— Javier Milei (@JMilei) April 21, 2025
Mexico
Gay couple claims Puerto Vallarta wedding venue discriminated against them
Jeremy Alexander and Ryan Sheepwash wanted to get married at Sheraton hotel
A gay couple claims a hotel in a Mexican resort city that is popular with LGBTQ travelers discriminated against them when they tried to book their wedding.
Jeremy Alexander and Ryan Sheepwash in a TikTok video said they contacted the Sheraton Buganvilias Resort and Convention Center in Puerto Vallarta about holding their wedding at the property.
The couple, who live in Vernon, British Columbia, provided the Washington Blade with an invoice that Gabriela Espinoza, a wedding planner at the property, sent them on Jan. 17, 2025.
The invoice said 25 “deluxe ocean view room ā all inclusive” rooms cost $970 a night. The total cost for the 25 rooms was $72,750.
Alexander in the TikTok video said it took Espinoza three months to send them the quote. The property, according to Alexander, requested a $36,000 deposit for half of the rooms.
“It’s not reasonable,” he said. “No one can afford that.”
Alexander said Espinoza told him and Sheepwash that the earliest they could have their wedding at the property was March 2027. Alexander in the TikTok video said he and Sheepwash asked a straight friend to “request a quote just to see apples to apples what it looks like.”
Ximena Esparza, another wedding planner at the property, on Feb. 7, 2025, sent the friend a quote for 25 rooms for a hypothetical wedding that was to have taken place from Feb. 19-26, 2026.
The quote for a “deluxe package” for 50 people was $8,500 and required a 20 percent deposit of $1,700.
“We just feel defeated,” said Sheepwash in the TikTok video. “It’s not fair because we love each other and we really want to get married, and we want to make it special and we want to make it perfect.”
@illuminaughtytriangle So disappointed that my fiancĆ©e and I got discriminated against by #Sheraton in #puertovallarta ā¬ original sound – Jeremy Alexander
The Blade in 2019 reported the Sheraton Buganvilias Resort and Convention Center refused to allow Josh Rimer, a gay Canadian vlogger and television host who is also Mr. Gay Canada 2019, and his then-fiancƩ to hold their wedding at the property.
The invoice that Espinoza sent to Alexander and Sheepwash notes the hotel is “operated under license from Marriott International, Inc., or one of its affiliates.”
A spokesperson for Marriott, which is based in Bethesda, Md., and is Sheraton’s parent company, in response to Rimer’s allegation said the corporation reached out to him to express “our sincerest apologies for his experience.”
āWe are troubled and greatly concerned about the experience reported by Mr. Rimer. Marriott has long been committed to providing an environment where all are welcome including our LGBTQ guests and their loved ones,ā said the spokesperson. āIn addition, we are looking further into the matter to better understand what happened and do what we can to prevent hurtful experiences like this from happening again.ā
A Marriot spokesperson on Thursday told the Blade the company has “reached out to Mr. Sheepwash and Mr. Alexander to learn more about their experience and are working with the property to offer a solution.”
“The Sheraton Buganvilias has been active in the LGBTQ+ community in Puerto Vallarta for years, hosting LGBTQ+ weddings and groups and also supporting Pride events in Puerto Vallarta,” said the spokesperson. “Marriott remains steadfast in our commitment to ensure guests are treated with respect and understanding.”
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