FEBRUARY 2011

Feb 28:  Germany:
Gay Rights Movement Born in 19th Century Germany, American Scholar Says.   Same-sex erotic relationships are as old as humanity, but our modern understanding of what it means to be homosexual – and the earliest gay rights movement – started in nineteenth-century Germany, according to an article by American historian Robert Beachy from Goucher College, Maryland.

Feb 26:  Lithuania:
No Room at the Table for Gay Rights Group.  National non-governmental organization Lithuanian Gay League (LGL) was barred from participating in the round table discussion on Belarusian democratic opposition and human rights issues held by Lithuanian Parliament Foreign Affairs Committee.

Feb 14:  Belarus:
No Incidents as Gays, Lesbians Staged First-Ever Authorised Rally in Minsk.  There were no reported incidents at the officially-approved rally against homophobia staged in the Belarus capital today.  A dozen LGBT activists took part in the rally in a park close to the Ministry of Justice, one of the locations that were approved last Friday by both the Minsk City Executive Committee and the police.

Feb 14:  UK:
Tatchell: Religious Civil Partnerships Are Long Overdue – The Next Logical Step?  End Ban on Gay Civil Marriage.  Commentary by Peter Tatchell.   It is wonderful news that the government is planning to end the ban on heterosexual civil partnerships.  The current prohibition on straight couples is arbitrary and unjust.

Feb 13:  Greece:
Gay Youth in Athens to Stage Public Valentine’s ‘Kiss-In’.  Greek youngsters are getting fed up that a male-female kiss in public is accepted in society, but a same-sex kiss is not.  And one Athens group, the recently-formed Colour Youth, aims to do something about it – on St. Valentine’s Day.

Feb 13:  UK:
Christian Think-Tank Welcomes Government Moves Over Gay Civil Partnerships in Religious Buildings.  The Christian think-tank Ekklesia has welcomed the news that the government is to push ahead with implementing a change in the law to allow religious premises and religious language to be used in same-sex civil partnership ceremonies.

Feb 12:  Belarus:
Gays and Lesbians Given Permission to Stage First-Ever Sanctioned Rally in Belarus.  City authorities in Minsk have given gay activists clearance to stage a rally against homophobia in the Belarusian capital on Monday.  Previously Belarus authorities have always banned public events by LGBT community, which sees this permission as a “first” in the country.

Feb 12:  UK:
Greens Select Nine LGBT Candidates for Brighton and Hove City Council Elections.  Nine LGBT candidates have been selected by the Green Party for the local city council elections in Brighton and Hove in May.

Feb 2:  Uganda:
The Murder of David Kato: One Week Later.   A press statement issued this morning in Kampala by the Civil Society Coalition on Human Rights and Constitutional Law.