IDEALS

BALI, (Aug. 13, 2009) IPS/GIN – Kartini Slemeh and other
transgenders in Malaysia fear that their movement to end stigma and
discrimination is misunderstood.

“There has been so much confusion going around transgenders. We
are not MSMs [men who have sex with men] and don’t lump us under
the transvestite [category either] because we have different
needs,” declared Slemeh at the 9th International Conference on AIDS
in Asia and the Pacific (ICAAP) here.

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BULAWAYO, (May 13, 2009) IPS/GIN – Zimbabwe is trying to rebuild
itself as a nation where rights to freedom of expression and
association are protected. Amongst the chorus of voices raised in
support of a new constitutional order are the country’s gays and
lesbians.

Sexual acts between men are still illegal in Zimbabwe; the absence
of constitutional protection for lesbians makes them equally
vulnerable to discrimination and prosecution.

Gays and Lesbians of Zimbabwe (GALZ) director Keith Goddard spoke
to IPS correspondent Busani Bafana about the challenges faced by
marginalised groups that his organisation represents. Read the rest of this entry →