China's Gay Activists Cheer New Openness on AIDS
Originally published by Reuters Health, November 14, 2001
BEIJING — In a country that has long kept homosexuals in the closet, and AIDS under wraps, gay activists in China at last have something to cheer about.
The Chinese Psychiatric Association dropped homosexuality from a list of psychiatric disorders this year. And this week, the first national conference on AIDS has gone some way to bring into public view a problem of potentially catastrophic proportions for the gay community.
Gay activists hope the next step will be AIDS education and awareness programmes in the homosexual community.
"At least people are making a connection between homosexuals and AIDS, regardless of whether it's good or bad," said Zhang Yi, who organises gay nights at a Beijing bar. But Zhang and others say that after years of discriminating against homosexuals, Chinese officials have little idea how to approach the community.
Gays themselves are still reluctant to come out of the closet. "Out of 100 of my friends, maybe only 5 let their families know they are gay," Zhang said.
Zhang Baichuan, a doctor from the northeastern port city of Qingdao who is involved in AIDS education and awareness programmes, said the highest levels of government already backed some AIDS programs among homosexuals. "Their understanding of gays is already basically connected with international standards," he said.
Last month, the official Xinhua news agency said vice minister of health Yin Dakui had urged special attention to strengthening AIDS education among China's homosexuals.
"This is a positive message," said Wan Yanhai, an activist who runs the Beijing-based AIDS Action Project. Despite that, however, China still does not publish statistics on homosexuals, which Wan estimated at about 100 million people, or more than 7% of the population.
And earlier this year the government attributed more than 1 in 5 of the 28,133 confirmed HIV/AIDS cases to unknown causes, which possibly includes homosexual activity.
As with many issues in China, the gap in understanding between the central government and local administrations is vast when it comes to issues about homosexuality, Zhang Baichuan said. "My work is supported by the government. But for cultural reasons, I'm afraid change comes very slowly," he said.
But Zhang Yi said in Beijing, at least, that was changing. "It's a lot more open now than it was even 3 years ago," he said. Police now rarely barged into the city's gay bars and harassed patrons, he pointed out. "As long as nobody's doing anything bad, getting involved in politics or at odds with the nation, the police don't care."
