Civil Partnership reading postponed
Ben Townley, Gay.com UK


The second reading of the Civil Partnership bill, which could give equality rights to millions of lesbian and gay couples, has been postponed.

The reading, due to take place in the House of Commons tomorrow, was the first time the bill could be fully debated by MPs.

It will now receive its second reading next month.

The Civil Partnership bill has already been through the House of Lords, where amendments that have since been criticised by gay advocacy groups were voted in.



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Homophobia Tackled In Welsh Media


Stonewall Cymru have launched a new project that aims to tackle homophobia by improving and increasing the representation of lesbian, gay and bisexual people in the Welsh media, including newspapers, magazines, TV and radio stations and current affairs and drama.

“Improving the representation of LGB people in the media is central to the fight against homophobia in Wales,” Stonewall Cymru’s Assistant Policy and Public Affairs Officer Matthew Batten said.


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Bangkok AIDS Conference: the blame game starts
Gus Cairns
www.guscairns.com


Two totally conflicting fault-finding assessments of the recent World AIDS Conference in Bangkok point to stormy times ahead for the convenors of the next conference in Toronto in 2006, and for the state of HIV medicine and politics in general.

The two assessments – one an editorial in the respected Lancet Infectious Diseases journal, and the other a ‘call to action’ by the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, the largest provider of HIV clinics in the USA, agree on one thing: Bangkok was marred by disunity and protest.

But they come to opposite conclusions about who is to blame and what must be done.

The Lancet asks: “Where has all the science gone?”.



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Suit Seeks To Strike Down Oklahoma Anti-Gay Adoption Law
by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff


(Norman, Oklahoma) In a federal lawsuit filed today, Lambda Legal seeks to overturn a law described as so extreme that it may leave children adopted by same-sex couples in other states orphans in the eyes of the law when the families are in the state of Oklahoma.

Lambda Legal represents same-sex couples who adopted children while living in other states and later moved to Oklahoma with their children or want to visit the state with their family.

"This drastic law could be interpreted to nullify legal adoptions of children by same-sex couples in other states when they are in Oklahoma," said Brian Chase, Staff Attorney in Lambda Legal's South Central Regional Office.

"What we are talking about here are Oklahoma legislators who disapprove of gay people and lashed out by passing a law that punishes children for having gay or lesbian parents."


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Out Military Gays Serve With Distinction In Iraq
by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff


(Santa Barbara, California) A study of gays in the military released Wednesday concludes that gays and lesbians are serving openly in the Middle East without undermining unit cohesion or the missions in Iraq and Afghanistan.

When gays are out, they report says "greater success in bonding, morale, professional advancement, levels of commitment & retention and access to essential support services."

The study, prepared for the Center for the Study of Sexual Minorities in the Military at the University of California, Santa Barbara, also found  that "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" has a negative effect not just on gays, but on those around them, by creating an atmosphere of dishonesty and distrust as well as disrespect for the law and the principles of integrity that are essential to military service.


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UN warns of population explosion


The population of developing countries will soar unless donors give more funds to reproductive health programmes, a UN Population Fund report says.

The world's 50 poorest countries will triple in size by 2050, surging to 1.7 billion people, it predicts.

Donors have been giving only half the funds pledged at a conference in Cairo in 1994, UNFPA told BBC News Online.