GAY GROUP PROPOSES OFFICIAL CRUISING AREA

Claiming the idea has worked in Copenhagen and Amsterdam, the London gay group OutRage! proposed Aug. 16 that a section of London's Russell Square be set aside for outdoor gay cruising and sex.

The group said establishing a "zone of toleration" would reduce public complaints and police harassment arising from nighttime activity in the square.

"One third of Russell Square could be sectioned off with a high fence and thick shrubbery," said OutRage!'s John Beeson. "Entrance to the area would be marked with a warning sign. A similar system has worked well in the main parks in Copenhagen and Amsterdam for many years.

"If local people don't like gay sex in Russell Square, they should stay away," Beeson said. "No one is forcing them to go there. They can use Bedford Square or Coram's Fields instead. In any case, what are these heterosexual whingers doing wandering around Russell Square at 2 a.m.? They should be at home looking after their children."

OutRage! blamed local authorities for increased complaints about sex in the square. "The Council increased the lighting in the square and cut down the thick shrubbery, making the sex more visible," the group said. "No wonder public complaints have increased. ... Camden Council should turn off the lights and replant head-high dense bushes around the outer perimeter of the square, the borders of the flower beds, and the sides of the cafe. That would cut the visibility of sexual behavior and minimize public complaints."

"Kenya has no room or time for homosexuals and lesbians," President Daniel arap Moi told the Daily Nation newspaper, the Sapa-Panos news agency reported Aug. 14

"Homosexuality is against African norms and traditions, and even in religion it is considered a great sin," he said.

Meanwhile, Kenyan Health Ministry spokesman Maina Kahindo has written off gays who are at risk for AIDS.

"Taking into account other modes of transmission of HIV/AIDS, homosexuality is negligible and should not take up our resources and time," Kahindo said. "We have other, far-more-pressing areas which affect the majority of our people and therefore need urgent attention."

The leaders of Zimbabwe and Namibia also have denounced gays. Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe has called homosexuals "repugnant to my human conscience ... immoral and repulsive" and said, "I don't believe they have any rights at all." Namibian President Sam Nujoma has said: "Homosexuals must be condemned and rejected in our society. All necessary steps must be taken to combat all influences that are influencing us and our children in a negative way."

Canadian federal Justice Andrew MacKay ruled Aug. 17 that the federal government is discriminating against gay employees with its "separate but equal" benefits program for "same-sex partner relationships."

Instead, the word "spouse" must be redefined so gay employees and their partners are included in the regular benefits scheme, MacKay said.

He called the dual system "appalling," explaining, "It is no more appropriate for the employer in this case to have established a separate definition for persons in same-sex relationships than it would have been for the employer to create separate definitions for relationships of persons based on their race, colour or ethnicity."

Partners of Canadian public servants began receiving benefits in 1996 following a human-rights tribunal ruling in a case brought by Stanley Moore, a foreign-service officer who had been denied spousal moving and housing benefits.

MacKay's ruling also granted human-rights officials the power to order the federal government to rework all laws, regulations and directives that discriminate against same-sex couples in the area of job benefits.

Five thousands gays and lesbians flooded into Ontario's Wonderland amusement park Aug. 8.

"It's a chance to be a kid again," said organizer Richard Silver.

Twenty fundamentalist Christians protested at the entrance carrying signs reading, "Ban Nudity and Buggery from Wonderland."

"Last year, there was a man wearing a G-string and his testicles were hanging out," Family Council regional director Terry Ruddell cautioned families about to enter the park.

Only a few families turned around.

Activists set off 60 alarm clocks outside the Swiss Justice Ministry in Bern Aug. 17 to protest the government's failure to issue a long-overdue report on the situation of gay/lesbian couples.

The protest was designed to serve as a "wake-up call," organizers said. The report was due in 1994.

Swiss gay couples face routine discrimination in such areas as accessing disability benefits and transferring a lease after a death, the protesters said.

Toronto's all-news TV station, CablePulse 24, has launched a one-hour weekly program on gay issues called "The Q-Files."

The show "celebrates non-conformity through the eyes of gays and lesbians," the producers said. "'The Q-Files' will prompt viewers, straight and gay, to take pride in their individuality.

Viewers will get up close with a range of issues: where to eat, dance, find God, save taxes, stay healthy, appreciate art, create family [and] reconcile differences (or not)."

CablePulse is owned by Canadian media mogul Moses Znaimer.

Gay protesters in Belfast, Northern Ireland, heckled U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich Aug. 11 as he visited a Habitat for Humanity housing project.

Gingrich ignored the demonstrators who chanted and waved placards. Later, a group of children tried to grab the protesters' signs.

Gingrich, who regularly votes anti-gay, was leading a delegation of congressmen on a three-day trip in advance of President Clinton's upcoming visit.

The Insurance Corporation of British Columbia has extended spousal benefits to same-sex partners in common-law-type relationships, the Westender reported.

ICBC insures all cars and drivers in Canada's westernmost province.

Regulations state that a gay relationship must exist for two years prior to an accident in order for the partner of an injured or killed person to claim benefits.

Filipino gays are becoming very public, Asia Week reports.

"Manila's homosexuals are not just out of the closet," the magazine said. "They are in the street, on TV and in the media.

They hold flamboyant gay pride marches, and the Santo Nino Club, a largely homosexual association of fashion types, stages an annual religious parade featuring a statue of the child Jesus in designer robes.

"Homosexual Filipinos participate in public life with a verve unmatched anywhere in the region," the magazine said, adding that several A-list gays have become fixtures in the social circle of former First Lady Amelita Ramos.

An openly lesbian member of the Port Adelaide Enfield Council in the state of South Australia resigned her seat Aug. 10 due to homophobic harassment.

"I was faced with no choice," Savannah Considine said. "I found it untenable with the vilification."

The harassment included "crass and offensive remarks" in person and via e-mail and fax, she said, and she feared the abuse would escalate to physical violence.

Considine blamed the atmosphere on a "political war" between the council's Labor and independent factions.

An Imax film of Sydney's famed gay Mardi Gras is being planned next year. The huge, round-screened, 3-D extravaganza likely will be directed by Richard Wherrett and produced by Total Film.

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