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A GLBTQ EDUCATION INTERNET RESOURCES The Middle East to Asia (4): Southeast Asia

Index: Asia & Middle East -  - Race/Ethnic Minority Issues: U.S., Canada, Europe,  New Zealand & Australia -  -  Latin America / Africa -  - Homosexuality:  Biological  or  Learned ? -  -  Public School Issues -  - Transgender / Tranvestite / Transsexual -  - Lesbian  &  Bisexual Women -  - Homo-Negativity / Phobia -  - Identity Formation  &  Coming Out -  - Counseling  &  Therapy -  - Professional Education  -  - Bisexuality -  - Religion   &  Spirituality -  - Male  Youth Prostitution -  - HIV-AIDS -  - Gay & Bisexual Male Suicide Problems -  - Drug / Alcohol Use / Abuse / Addiction  -  - GLBT  History -  - Community Attributes  &  Problems - -  Couples / Families / Children / Adoption / Spousal Violence -  - The Elderly

The Middle East to Asia: Southeast Asia

Full Text Papers!  - - AsiaPacifiQueer 3

Sexualities, Genders, And Rights in Asia: An International Conference of Asian Queer Studies Bangkok, Thailand, July 8-10, 2005 Closing date for submitting paper and panel proposals: October 31, 2004

Section Index

Part 6 (This Page) - General Asian Resources --- International Issues & Resources.

Part 1 - Middle East to Central Asia: Central Asia: - Middle East / Eastern Mediterranean Region: - Iran -- Israel -- Palestine -- Lebanon -- Jordan -- Saudi Arabia -- Kuwait -- Iraq -- Bahrain -- Oman -- Yemen -- Syria -- Egypt -- Algeria -- Morocco -- Tunisia -- Turkey -- Cyprus -- Afghanistan -- Kazakhstan -- Kyrgyzstan -- Uzbekistan -- Turkmenistan -- Tajikistan.

Part 2 - South Asia: South Asia - Web Resources - Bibliographies - Books: - India - Films -- Bangladesh -- Nepal -- Sri Lanka -- Pakistan -- Bhutan -- Maldives -- Full Text Papers.

Part 3 - Northeast Asia: - China - History - Films - Web Resources. -- Hong Kong - Films - Web Resources. -- Taiwan  - Films - Web Resources. -- Tibet -- Mongolia -- South Korea - Web Resources. -- Japan - History  - Films - Web Resources - Books -- Full Text Papers.

Part 4 - Southeast Asia: Mekong Region: Vietnam - Web Resources - Books. -- Thailand - Web Resources - Books. -- Cambodia -- Laos -- Full Text Papers.

Part 5 - Southeast Asia (Not Including Mekong Region): Singapore - Web Resources - Books. -- Malaysia - Web Resources - Books. -- Philippines - Web Resources - Books. -- Indonesia -- East Timor -- Burma -- Brunei -- Guam -- Nauru - Full Text Papers.

ASIAN & INTERNATIONAL RESOURCES

ASIAN RESOURCES

Homosexuality: A Western Import: "The most visible gay movements and communities are at present found in Western countries. As a result, many people think that homosexuality is a Western import, a bad influence from there. If at all they ponder the question of indigenous homosexuality, they see in their minds transvestites, i.e. cross-dressers. If they think a little harder they may add effeminate males, albeit non-cross-dressing. In the view of the general population, these are the only kinds of indigenous homosexuality within Asian societies, a bad enough disgrace as they are. This popular view is plain wrong. Homosexuality has always been part of Asian culture, it was not imported. It has even been celebrated in poetry and writing, and the predominant part of our history is not the cross-dressing or effeminate variety..." - Homosexuals in Asia press for basic rights. - AIDS, Children, The United Nations & Southeast Asia. - Research and discussion paper: An Overview of TG in Asia. - Huge HIV uptick feared in Asia and Pacific. - Virtual Refuge for Gay Muslims. - Gay Asian American Male: Inter-Racial Dating. - Critical regionalities and the study of gender and sexual diversity in South East and East Asia.

Revolution by Stages (Asia Week) (Alternate Link) (Alternate Link): Things are gradually getting better for Asia's homosexuals - but acceptance is still a long way off.  - Coming Out: Gay and Lesbian Life in East Asia (BBC): "Standing out from the crowd is hard in any country. But what if your sexuality was outlawed and practising it could land you a lengthy jail term? And what if there was no word in your language to describe the very essence of your being? The breadth of gay and lesbian experience in East Asia is incredibly varied. It ranges from Chinese lesbians who call themselves 'female comrades' for want of a better word, to 'Muk nar' or transvestites in Islamic Malaysia." -  "Too Busy Studying and No Time for Sex?" Homosexually Active Male  International Students and Sexual Health: "Most of the students were from Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand and four had undertaken their secondary education in Australia. - The fetishisation of Asian and White.

Spelling It Out: From Alphabet Soup to Sexual Rights. (Alternate Link) - Nation V Gay and Lesbian Event in Phuket: Singapore threw them out; so Asia's largest Gay and Lesbian event decided to set up house in Phuket. Nation V, the fifth annual international Gay and Lesbian party, started today in Phuket, Thailand. This year's gathering includes events at nine venues on the island. Nation V is timed as a precursor to the Gay Pride week in Thailand and the November 13 Gay Pride Parade in Bangkok. - Coming Out in Dialogue: Policies and perceptions of Sexual Minority Groups in Asia & Europe (by the Asia-Europe Foundation: PDF Download). - Gay Asia Tolerance Pays: Special Report Coming Out, Cashing In-Why Gay Rights Make Economic Sense. - New gay guise to hostile Asia (2006): The editor of a new gay and lesbian travel guide to Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia said he hopes the book will foster more acceptance of homosexuality -- which is outlawed in two of the three conservative Southeast Asian nations. The Utopia Guide to Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia, launched in late April, is the first such guide for the three countries, Utopia Guides editor John Goss said.

Auntie Teck rendition of lesbian life in Asia: "Huge pressure to marry... In most Asian countries, there are no places where lesbians can meet... The absence of community distorts visibility and identity... Because of the strong visibility of the "butch" type, many women pursue this image in an effort to identify with the invisible community... Butch/femme couples appear to be the norm for lesbians - again with limited visibility it is  hard to know if this is true." - The Asian Transgendered Experience, by Sam Winter: ILGA's 2006 oreconference on trans issues (PDF Download).

Social Rape: Exploration of Implication of Forced Marriage of Lesbians in Asia (Popho E.S. Park-Lee, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia) (Abstract, Must Scroll: PDF Download. Full text): "Social implication of rape has been vigorously discussed and debated by feminist scholars and activists through out the globe. The boundary between sexual act by consent or by force is yet not clearly understood. What is then the implication of such definition, law or declaration regarding sexual violence on LGBTQ community, especially on female? What about the situation where a woman who seems to be an ordinary heterosexual woman married to a man but in fact she is a lesbian who was forced to marry a man by her own family who could not accept her abnormal‚ sexuality but chose to put her into normal‚ life by force and even by physical violence? Can the sexual act take place between this woman and man be considered as to be by consent? If one sees this crime against her will in the as she was forced to marry him, how will be that committed this crime? My paper will explore this issue employing the concept of human rights and national policy such as law in Asian context from a feminist point of view."

Jackson PA (1996): The Persistence of Gender: From Ancient Indian Pandakas to Modern Thai Gay-Quings. Australian Humanities Review. - Homosexuality in Non-European Cultures. - Social taboos pressure lesbian love: Throughout South Asia, homosexuality has been a taboo subject. There are signs in some areas that gay people are now becoming more open - but that is not always the case. In the latest in a series of articles from the region, Sutapa Mukerjee looks at a problematic lesbian relationship in Allahabad, India. - Articles related to gay, bi, lesbian, transgender Asian/Pacific people.

Queer Asian Cinema: Shadows in the Shade - 2001 - edited by Andrew Grossman (Editor Profile) (PDF Download from Haworth Press): Abstracts for Papers: ‘‘Beautiful Publicity’’: An Introduction to Queer Asian Film. - Japan’s Progressive Sex: Male Homosexuality, National Competition, and the Cinema. - The (Temporary?) Queering of Japanese TV. - Two Japanese Variants of the Absolute Transvestite Film. - Obscenity and Homosexual Depiction in Japan. - The Rise of Homosexuality and the Dawn of Communism in Hong Kong Film: 1993-1998. - Happy Alone? Sad Young Men in East Asian Gay Cinema. - The Cross-Gender Performances of Yam Kim-Fei, or The Queer Factor in Postwar Hong Kong Cantonese. - Farewell My Fantasy. - The Outcasts: A Family Romance. - Homosexual Men (and Lesbian Men) in a Heterosexual Genre: Three Gangster Films from Hong Kong. - Remembered Branches: Towards a Future of Korean Homosexual Film. - Queering Bollywood: Alternative Sexualities in Popular Indian Cinema. - Memories Pierce the Heart: Homoeroticism, Bollywood-Style. - The Changing Image of the Hero in Hindi Films. - Long Life of a Short Film (Full Text). - Transvestites and Transgressions: Panggagaya in Philippine Gay Cinema. -

Rao JVRP (2006). Men who have sex with men (MSM) and transgender (PDF Download): The Missing Link in the National Response. Opening speech at Male Sexual Health and HIV in Asia and the Pacific International Consultation: “Risks and Responsibilities,” New Delhi, India, 23rd September 2006: Male to male sex is presently a missing link in national responses to HIV and AIDS in Asia and the Pacific region. Services for MSM are almost non-existent. A 2005 coverage survey of major Asia-Pacific countries estimated that more than 90% of these men and transgendered people did not have any access to targeted prevention programmes. - MAP (2005). Male-Male Sexand HIV/AIDS in Asia. MAP (Monitoring the AIDS Epidemic) Report (PDF Download). The text and graphics of the report are based on AIDS in Asia: Face the Facts, a report issued by the Monitoring the AIDS Pandemic (MAP) Network in 2004, prepared by Elizabeth Pisani and Tim Brown. - Men Who Have Sex With Men Vulnerable to HIV/AIDS in Asia, but Widely Ignored. - HIV/AIDS in South & Southeast Asia... Abstracted from Report on the Global AIDS Epidemic, UNAIDS, May 2006.

No room for transgender people in HIV funding: In Asia, as in many parts of the world, men who have sex with men often hide their sexual preferences for fear of being harassed by police, ostracised by their families or discriminated against by their communities. But transgender people, who do not identify with the sexuality they were born with - known as "warias" in Indonesia and "hijimas" in parts of India - are less likely to hide their sexual orientation, and face even higher levels of stigma and discrimination than men who have sex with men (MSM). The result, according to presenters at a special session on transgenderism at the 8th International Congress on AIDS in Asia and the Pacific (ICAAP), in Colombo, Sri Lanka, this week, is to push them further underground, making them extremely hard to reach with HIV prevention, care and treatment. They often suffer from depression as a result of rejection by family and friends, which can lead to substance abuse and other risk-taking behaviours, making them particularly vulnerable to HIV infection...

Strategy Report: Strategizing Interventions among MSM in the Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMR) CDC-GAP/USAID-RDM/FHI-APD Workshop. February/March 2005. Bangkok, Thailand (PDF Download): Fluidity of male-to-male sexuality... In our region, there is a huge variety and fluidity of male-to-male sexual behavior. Behavior seems to be less linked to identity – ‘indigenous’ identity labels are in short supply. Because seen as a behavior, male to male sex seems less linked to guilt / sin than in other areas of the world – easier to interpret it as a game or as release, like drinking alcohol or gambling. This makes the number of ‘MSM’ potentially huge... However in the past years some countries in the GMR have started to collect information on male-to-male sex. After years of programming neglect, this has yielded some unpleasant surprises: high levels of unprotected anal sex (commercial and non-commercial), low use of water-based lubricants, and, as a result, high levels of HIV prevalence: infection rates of 15% were found among MSM in Phnom Penh (Cambodia, 2000); 17% of MSM in Bangkok (Thailand, 2003); 8% of MSM in Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam, 2004); 3% of MSM in Beijing (China. 2004). These findings have led to the implementation of pilot interventions in the cities where the research was conducted, but at the same time other possible “hotspots” with significant male-to-male sexual vulnerability to HIV/AIDS have been left unidentified, thus uncovered by appropriate interventions. In none of the GMR countries, strategies and guidelines to scale-up these initial interventions among MSM exist...

Closets Are Not For Us: Views From Five Lesbians: "In China, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered people's communities started to emerge after the adoption of a new reform and open-door policy about 20 years ago. More information helped promote diversity in people's lives. Gay bars, lesbigay hotlines, publications, movies and other artistic works begun to appear and lesbigay groups were established. This was the report made by Yanhai Wan before the 4th Asian Lesbian Network Conference held in Manila in December 1998. In Korea, while lesbian groups were rumoured to exist, they were rarely acknowledged, if at all, by the mass media until the 1990s, according to another country report. In Malaysia, economic independence for many lesbians has been the key to attaining their own sexuality, reveals a report by Nadiah Bamadhaj presented during the same conference. In Thailand, a lesbian movement was organised in 1986, while in India, the first organisation of lesbian and bisexual women was formed in Bombay only in 1995..."

Conspicuous by their absence: Men who have sex with men – the missing piece in national responses to AIDS in Asia and the Pacific (PDF Download): "In the first two articles in this edition of Pukaar, we look at the significant donor, government and non-government agencies policy issues that are having a dramatic impact on MSM, HIV, risks and vulnerabilities. The increasing HIV burden being placed on MSM across many countries in Asia and the Pacific, arise from stigma, discrimination, social exclusion and denial, not only by local people, but also by governments, the private sector, bilateral and multilateral donors, along with international and national non-government agencies. As a consequence, there is an enormous under-investment in tackling HIV among MSM across the region, along with a extremely low coverage of appropriate HIV prevention, care, support and treatment services. Fine words are often spoken by all these stakeholders, but as the saying goes "the proof in the pudding is in the eating". What exists at "ground zero" is a terrible indictment of all concerned..." - Percent of active MSM who are married or report recent sex with women, various [Asian Cities &] countries (PPT Page). - TREAT Asia Will Coordinate MSM Interventions Network in Asia.

Taboos and denial in government responses:  The most striking fact about HIV/AIDS is that it continues to spread even when the means of prevention are well known and do not demand costly technology to implement. This article argues that the fundamental barriers to effective prevention are social and cultural, and that many authorities place more emphasis on preserving traditional norms and social arrangements than on saving lives. The case is argued with particular reference to the impact of globalization on sexual behaviours, and the attempts by conservatives to deny existing behaviours and vulnerabilities. Current debates around abstinence, homosexuality and harm minimization are discussed to demonstrate the deeply political nature of HIV prevention.

First International Conference of Asian Queer Studies (2005): Papers available for download. - The 2005 Conference Abstracts: Many of these possible papers were either not presented or not made avaible as full text papers (PDF Download) (Alternate Link). - Titles for abstracts of these paper:   

First International Conference of Asian Queer Studies (2005): Papers available for download. - The 2005 Conference Abstracts: Many of these possible papers were either not presented or not made avaible as full text papers (PDF Download) (Alternate Link). - Titles for abstracts of these paper: related to Asia Region: - Encountering Babylon: Pursuing Beauty & Sexual Justice at a Globalized Gay Sauna (Gary Atkins, Seattle University): "Today in Southeast Asia, one such bathhouse stands out in its reputation as a place of contact and communication among gay Asian men from throughout the region, as well as among Euro-American men. This journalistic paper examines the history and role within Southeast Asia of what has become one of the world’s best known gay bathhouses, Babylon...." - The Wedding Banquet Effect: Gay = Modern in Asian Cinema? (Chris Berry, Goldsmiths College). - Online Publication: The Experience of Intersections (Carolyn Brewer, Murdoch University). - Rice Sticking Together: Desire and the Cinematic Representation of Caucasian-Chinese Relationships (Kenneth Chan, Nanyang Technological University). - Globalizing Gay Culture in Virtual Space: the Case of the Virtualized Gay Identity (Nikos Lexis Dacanay, University of the Philippines). - Education on LGBT Issues in a Global Context: Opportunities in Asia (Peter Dankmeijer, Empowerment Lifestyle Services). - Towards Cross-Regional Dialogue: Perspectives from the Americas (Carlos Decena, Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies). - Faking Gender: Violence and Baseness from 1970s Lesbian Pulp to 1990s Queer Gothic Fiction’ (Naifei Ding, Jen-Peng Liu & Amie Parry, National Central University, National T’sing Hua University). - Probing Pink Porn: The perceived value of sexual content for homosexual and heterosexual audiences (Andrea Goh, Melissa Say, Gerald Tan, Frederick Tong, Nanyang Technological University).  - Comparative Female Masculinities (Judith Halberstam, University of Southern California). - Reconsidering the Rice Queen (Dredge Byung’chu Kang, Emory University). - Social Rape: Exploration of Implication of Forced Marriage of Lesbians in Asia (Popho E.S. Park-Lee, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia). - Sexing the Cinematic Space: Films from Hong Kong, China and Taiwan (Sean Metzger, Duke University). - Queer Spectacles: Beyond the Legal Codification of Asian Homosexuality (Chandan Reddy, University of Washington). - When Sex Happens: Sexual Rights and Transnational Activism (Stephan Sastrawidjaja, International Gay & Lesbian Human Rights Commision). - Implementation of International Human Rights Standards on Sexuality within Domestic Courts in Asia-Pacific Countries (Hiroyuki Taniguchi, Chuo University). - The Pink Dollar: Limits of Gay Tourism Marketing (Daniel Tsang, University of California). - No More Déjà Vu: Western Nostalgia Meets Eastern Queerness (Huso Yi, Korean Sexual-Minority Culture & Rights Center). - Uniquely Positioned?: Lived Experiences of Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Asian Muslims in Britain (Andrew Kam-Tuck Yip, Nottingham Trent University). - Governing (Diasporic Asian) Sexuality: Same-Sex Migration in Australia (Audrey Yue, University of Melbourne). - The Crossroads of Asian and Western Non-heterosexual Identity Construction (Voon Chin Phua, Gettysburg College).

An International Conference of Queer Asian Studies Convened by the AsiaPacifiQueer Network At the University of Technology, Sydney, City Campus, Sydney, Australia On the 22 & 23 February, 2007. - Second International Conference of Asian Queer Studies (2007). - Confirmed Paper to be Presented (PDF Download).  - First Report on Conference: Word Download. Related Reports / Newsletters. - Sexualities and the National Body in Asia: an Interdisciplinary Symposium.

The Ultimate "Planet Out" Guide to Queer Movies (Subject: Asian Images). - Asian/Pacific lesbian/bisexual related films. - Images of Asian males. - Queer Asian/Pacific related films. - Amazon.com's Gay Asian Films. - Asian Dykes Take to Celluloid: An interview with an organizer of the upcoming First Asian Lesbian Film and Video Festival to be held in Taiwan.

Asian GLBTQ Film Articles: - Tsunami of New Queer Cinema from Asia. -  At an annual gathering of global queer film festival organizers, Asian gay and lesbian film festival programmers highlighted the challenges they faced.  - GLBTQ: Asian Film. - Lesbian and Gay Films Expand Boundaries of Asian Cinema. - Everything in Between: Queer Asians in time and space. - "Beautiful publicity": an introduction to queer Asian film. - Queer Asian Cinema: Shadows in the Shade (PDF Download). - Queer Film in East Asia. - Focus on Asia at Sydney Film Festival. - Cross-Cultural Images of Queers in Film. - Thinking Queer in Asian Cinema. - What is the “Asian Lesbian Film and Video Festival”? - Asian Dykes Take to Celluloid: An interview with an organizer of the upcoming First Asian Lesbian Film and Video Festival to be held in Taiwan...

INTERSECTIONS (Journal): Gender, History & Culture in the Asian Context: Intersections is a refereed electronic journal conceived as an interactive forum for new research and teaching in the area of Gender Studies in the Asian region. It stems from Murdoch University's School of Asian Studies and was originally published with the financial assistance of the Division of Social Sciences, Humanities and Education. - Selected Bibliography from issues 1-14 collated by Ian Henderson:  This bibliography is a work in progress and contains references that are cited in articles in Intersections. - Transgenderism and gender pluralism in southeast asia since early modern times. Commentary.

The International Institute for Asian Studies (IIAS) Newsletter 29: Asian Homosexualities (PDF Downloads):   Asians of the Same Intent. - Restless Longing. - Kamingu Auto: Homosexuality and Popular Culture in Japan. - Gay vs. ‘Kathoey’: Homosexual Identities in Thailand. - The Legacy of the Crocodile: Critical Debates over Taiwanese Lesbian Fiction. - Now You See It, Now You Don’t: Homosexual Culture in Indonesia. - Birthday in Beijing: Women Tongzhi Organizing in 1990s’ China. -  Homosexuality in India: Past and Present. - The Remaking of a Cambodian-American Drag Queen. - New Park: Gay Literature in Taiwan. - Who’s That Girl? -. Filtered Voices. -  Queer Mongolians: Is Isolation their Destiny?

Resource Links: - The Complete Guide to Gay Thailand & Gay Asia. - Asian / Pacific Gays & Friends Links. - Asia Views.  - Floating Lotus Resources and Links of Interest. - GayRice.com. -  Utopia's Asian Resources. - Southeast Asia Web's Gay and Lesbian Resources Page. - Utopia's Asian lesbian Resources. - The New Lesbian Asia Web Ring. - FilipinoLinks.com's GLBTQ Links. - Researchers in gender identity and transgender in Asia. - Thirteen General Statements about TG in Asia. - Asian AIDS/HIV Information Archive at Utopia. - Asian AIDS/HIV Articles/Reports. - Gay Asia News & Reports.- Asian Gay Travels.

Resource Links (Not Updated): - Asian Pacific Lesbian and Bisexual Women's Resources.  - Gay, bi, lesbian, transgender A/P youth resources.- Queer Asian Pacific resources. - Queer Asian/Pacific Web Resources. - Southeast Asia Web's Gay and Lesbian Resources Page. 

Gay Asia (Global Gayz) - The Eastgarden. 

QRD - Gayscape - Pridelinks. - Rainbow Query: Asian-Pacific. - Open Directory.

Resources - News: - Gay News & Gossip from Thailand and Around Asia. - Asian News Items from Long Yang Club, Toronto.: 2007. 2006. 2005. 2004, 2003, 2002, 2001, 2000, 1999, 1998, 1997, 1996.  - Fridae Magazine: Asia's Gay + Lesbian Network. - GayRice.com: . 

Resources - Bibliographies: - Floating Lotus Books and Bua Luang Books Bookstore N/A (Archive Link). - Bibliography of Asian TG Studies. - GLBTQ Asian Anthologies. - Anthologies of Gay Fiction. - East Asia's Gay and Lesbian Life Revealed in Three New Travel Books. 

Resources - Books: - Ohio State University Library's GLB  Book list (China, Japan, New Guinea, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and other Asia and Pacific countries.) - Gay Asian Literature: Non Fiction. - Gay Asian Literature: Anthologies. - Gay Asian Literature. - Gay/Lesbian SA Literature. - Books by and for South Asian women. - Asian Gay Books-1 & Asian Gay Books-2. - Asian homosexuality bibliography. - GLBTQ Asian Books. - Books related to gay, bi, lesbian, transgender Asian/Pacific people. - Amazon: Asian GLBT Books.

Books: - Passions of the Cut Sleeve: The Male Homosexual Tradition in China, by Bret Hinsch (University of California Press 1990). (Excerpts) - The Rainbow Connection: The internet & the Singapore gay community by Ng King Kang, 1999. - Sex, Longing & Not Belonging: A Gay Muslim's Quest for Love & Meaning - 1997 - by Badruddin Khan (Amazon.com Reference). - Queer Asian Cinema: Shadows in the Shade - 2001 - edited by Andrew Grossman (PDF Download from Haworth Press). - New book: Gay Chinese history. - Different Rainbows: Same-Sex Sexualities and Popular Movements in the Third World - 2000 - edited by Peter Drucker (7 Sample Pages) (Review: PDF Download) (Table of Contents). Contains: "‘The emergence of gay identities in Southeast Asia" (P. 137-156) "Dennis Altman, from Australia, and reknown for his groundbreaking book Homosexual: oppression and liberation in 1971, explores the emergence of gay identities in Southeast Asia."  - Gay and Lesbian Asia: Culture, Identity, Community - 2001 - edited by Gerard Sullivan and Peter A. Jackson (Amazon.com Reference). - Mobile Cultures: New Media in Queer Asia - 2003 - edited by Chris Berry, Fran Martin and Audrey Yue (Review) (Review: HTML, PDF) (Amazon). - Gender Pluralism: Southeast Asia Since Early Modern Times - 2007 - by Michael Peletz. - A Lotus of Another Color: An Unfolding of the South Asian Gay and Lesbian Experience - 1993 - edited by Rakesh Ratti. - Same-sex Cultures and Sexualities: An Anthropological Reader - 2004 - edited by Jennifer Robertson (Review).

Search GLBTQ: The Encyclopedia of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender & Queer Culture. - Search BGLAD. - Search the QRD. - Search all GLBT Resource Directories. - Search Google.com. - Search Google Scholar. - Search Google's G:LBT Directory. - MSN Search. - Search findarticles.com: many full text articles and papers.

Academic Searches: Search IngentaConnect: The most comprehensive collection of academic and professional publications. - Search Project Muse: Scholarly Journals Online. - Search JSTOR: The Scholarly Journal Archive. - Search The National Library of Medicine.

Full Text Articles / Papers / Studies / Reports (and/or Abstracts):

amfAR (2006). MSM and HIV/AIDS Risk in Asia: What Is Fueling the Epidemic Among MSM and How Can It Be Stopped?  TREATAsia (Therapeutics Research - Education - AIDS Training) & anfAR (amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research).  PDF Download.  PDF Download.

Bark-Yi PES (2000). Social Rape: Exploration of the Implication of Forced/Coerced Marriage of Lesbian in Asia. Paper presented at the 1st International Conference of Queer Study in Bangkok, Thailand.  PDF Download.

Bulbeck C (2001). Western feminisms through Asian eyes: reading English-speaking feminisms from the perspective of the 'other'. Paper presented to The Future of Gender: a one-day research workshop Convened by Delys Bird and Jane Long Gender and Cultures programme, UWA. Full Text. 

Doussantousse S, Anh N, Tooke L (2002). Synopsis of Men engaged in having sex with men in Viet Nam - a Hanoi snapshot. Part 1. Part 2.

Engebretsen E (2005). Lesbian Identity and Community Projects in Beijing: Notes from the Field on Studying and Theorising Same-Sex Cultures in the Age of Globalization.  Paper presented at The First International Conference of Asian Queer Studies, Bangkok, Thailand, July. PDF Download. Download Page.

Erni JN (2005). Queer Pop Asia: Toward a Hybrid Regionalist Imaginary. Paper presented at The First International Conference of Asian Queer Studies, Bangkok, Thailand, July. PDF Download. Download Page.

Futures C (2007). Spending on HIV prevention programmes for MSM in the Asia-Pacific region: do resource levels match estimated needs?  Pukaar: the journal of Naz Foundation International, 58: 8-9. PDF Download.

HIV/AIDS Coordination and School Health Unit UNESCO Bangkok (Draft, 2005). Review of the socio-cultural research on HIV/AIDS in the greater Mekong subregion.  PDF Download.

Holmes MM (2004). Locating Third Sexes. Transformation, 8. Full Text.

Jacques L (2005). Queering the Culture: How Does the Gay Discourse Change if We Take Cross Cultural Communication Seriously? Paper presented at The First International Conference of Asian Queer Studies, Bangkok, Thailand, July. PDF Download. Download Page.

Jenkins C (2004). Male Sexuality, Diversity and Culture: Implications for HIV Prevention and Care. PDF Download.

Jenkins C (2006). Male sexuality and HIV: The case of male-to-male sex. A background paper produced for Risks and Responsibilities: Male Sexual Health and HIV in Asia and the Pacific International Consultation held in New Delhi, India 23-26 September 2006 [PDF Download]. Cover terminology problems and summarized the recent research, inluding some MSM history.  PDF Download.  PDF Download. Download Page.  - The Delhi Declaration of Collaboration.

Sanders D (2006). Health And Rights: Human Rights And Intervention Programs For Males Who Have Sex With Males In Southeast Asia And East Asia.  PDF Download. Download Page.

Sander D (2005). Flying the rainbow flag in Asia. Paper presented at The First International Conference of Asian Queer Studies, Bangkok, Thailand, July. PDF Download. Download Page.

Tan C (2004). Signaling Towards a Gay Future: SiGNeL and the Singaporean Gay Community.  Full Text.

UNAIDS (2007). Conspicuous by their absence: Men who have sex with men – the missing piece in national responses to AIDS in Asia and the Pacific. Pukaar: the journal of Naz Foundation International, 58: 1-7. PDF Download.

Vitiello  (2002). Asians of the Same Intent. IIAS Newsletter, 29, November. PDF Download. Download Page.

Wilson A (2006). Queering Asia. Intersections: Gender, History and Culture in the Asian Context, Issue 14. Full Text.

Wilson A (2005). Intra-Asian Circuits and the Problem of Global Queer. Paper presented at The First International Conference of Asian Queer Studies, Bangkok, Thailand, July. PDF Download. Download Page.  

Winder R (2006). HIV and Men who have Sex with Men in Asia and the Pacific. UNAIDS Best Practice Collection. PDF Download.

Yamamoto T, Itoh S (Wds., 2006). Fighting a Rising Tide The Response to AIDS in East Asia.  Japan Center for International Exchange and Friends of the Global Fund: Overview. Australia. Cambodia. China. Indonesia. Japan. Republic of Korea. Lao PDR. Malaysia. Philippines. Taiwan. Thailand. Vietnam. Download Page. Chinese Version.
 

INTERNATIONAL ISSUES & RESOURCES

On Global Queering by Dennis Altman (with responses to article). - Sex, Politics, and Political Economy (by Dennis Altman, Selections from previous writings). - Rupture or Continuity? The Internationalization of Gay Identities. - Sexuality and Globalization. - Homosexuality in Non-European Cultures. - Queer Globalization Conference Stages Conversation Between Postcolonial and Queer Studies. - Globalizing Sex. - Glocalqueering in New Asia: The Politics of Performing Gay in Singapore: Called "global queering" by some theorists, this neoliberal model of free market transmission, by which an emancipatory and often glamorized Western gay culture is transforming the rest of the world, presumes a primarily North American and secondarily European standard constituting what we think of as "'modern' homosexuality."^1 In every modern capitalist society, then, global queer boys are perceived to come out with a universal gay identity that both distinguishes and sets them free within a transnational Gay Pride world. While such a performative trope is gaining prominence, one has to ask whether such identitarian paradigms of global queering are applicable--or even should be applied--to global cities like Singapore... - Session 118: Mass Media, Globalization, and Asian Sexualities.

Same-sex sexualities and the globalization of human rights discourse (McGill Law Journal: PDF Download. - Sexual Orientation, Human Rights and Global Politics (PDF Download).- From global discourse to local action: the makings of a sexual rights movement? - Queer Global Education: Finding Me, Finding You (PDF Download) (Abstract). - Where Having Sex is a Crime: Criminalization and Decriminalization of Homosexual Acts (2003). - Gay Law: Emancipation And Emasculation. - 'In the Tropics There Is No Sin': Sexuality and Gay-Lesbian Movements in the Third World. - Breaking a Lance for Equal Treatment of Queer People (PDF Download). - Human rights and sexual orientation in international law (PDF Download. Word Download). - ‘We Do’? International perspectives on equality, legality and same-sex relationships (PDF Download). - ‘Yogyakarta Principles’ a Milestone for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Rights: Experts Set Out Global Standards for Sexual Rights and Gender Equality (PDF Download). - Sexual Minorities and the Law: A World Survey: Updated July 2006 (Word Download). - "Gay rights" for "gay whites"?: Race, sexual identity, and equal protection discourse..;. by Darren Lenard Hutchinson. Cornell Law Review, 85(5), July 2000 (Excerpts) . - "Queer" As A Tool Of Colonial Oppression: The Case Of Israel/Palestine.

Implementation of International Human Rights Standards on Sexuality within Domestic Courts in Asia-Pacific Countries (Hiroyuki Taniguchi, Chuo University) (Abstract, Must Scroll: PDF Download. Full text): "The purpose of this paper is to overview the human rights of LGBTQ from international human rights law perspective and to show the way to fulfil the international human rights standards of LGBTQ in Asian-Pacific countries. Firstly, the author demonstrates what kind of international human rights norms are guaranteed in international plane. Since the creation of UN, human rights have become a matter of international concern. Although no treaties, except for Treaty of Amsterdam, contains sexual orientation or gender identity so far, some international courts and quasi-judicial organizations interpret that international human rights law encompass the human rights of LGBTQ. This paper analyzes the judgments, views and resolutions on LGBTQ which had been made by UN family and other international organizations, e.g., the Human Rights Commission under the ICCPR, the UN Commission and Sub-Commission on Human Rights and the European Courts of Human Rights. Thereafter, the author examines the implementation of these human rights within national plane. It is not efficient enough just to show the recent evolution of international human rights standard of LGBTQ. As provided in Vienna Declaration on Human Rights, the obligation to fulfil all human rights and fundamental freedoms are primarily imposed on national level. To make the international human rights standards of LGBTQ into reality in Asia-Pacific countries, this paper shows a model assertion in Japanese courts for instance, based upon the general theory of relationship between international and national law together with the legal characteristic of international human rights norm."

The End of Queer (as we knew it): Globalization and the making of a gay-friendly South Africa. - Re-Orienting Desire: The Gay International and the Arab World.(Alternate Link)  - Localizing Desire: Globalization and the Brazilian Lesbian, Gay and Transgendered Movement.  - Borfer/Line Sex: Queer postcolonialities, or how race matters outside the United states (PDF Download). - The Queer Stopover: How Queer Travels in the Language Classroom (PDF Download).

Learning the Power of Sexuality [Pedagogy, Culture and Society, 10(1),  2002]: PDF Download. - Same-sex Unions: The Globalization of an Idea: PDF Download. - Global Queer Tastes: Performance in Inter-Asian and Inter-African Perspectives.(Related Information: PDF Download). - Masculinity and nationalism: gender and sexuality in the making of nations (PDF Download). - Critical regionalities and the study of gender and sexual diversity in South East and East Asia. - Contemporary Colonialism - A View from the East: Colonialism often implies "finished project" in contemporary world where the colonized has gained illusionary freedom in the discourses of "post-colonialism."   In fact, colonialism has never finished.   It continues to exist as a cultural phenomenon.   A Japanese cultural studies scholar, Kumagome Takeshi, claimed in his article 'Japanese Colonial Memory and Modernity: Successive Layers of Violence' that even there is no colonized, there are always colonizers (2001: 207-258).   Even the era moved to a post-colonial phase, the hegemonic power of the West stays as strong as in colonialism era.   Post-colonial discourses may be in danger of neutralizing historical inequalities...  

At Home in a World of Strangers. Towards a Comparison of Gay Urban Cultures: - Towards a global gay culture?. - Cultural Construction(s) of Same Sex Sexual Relations (Northern Arizona University Women's Studies 394: PDF Download) - Global Gayz: Index of Stories. - InterPride: Global Pride Calendars of World GLBT Pride Events. - Gay and Lesbian Asia: Culture, Identity, Community. - Lesbian and Gay Films Expand Boundaries of Asian Cinema. - GLBT in the non-European World. - It's what you do: most of the men who have sex with men in the South probably don't identify themselves as `gay' or `bisexual': The story from the South is different. In sub-Saharan Africa, India and China, the majority of HIV/AIDS cases have been among heterosexuals and intravenous drug-users or through contaminated blood. This, together with the World Health Organization's emphasis on `the global epidemic', has effectively obscured the route of transmission of HIV through men who have sex with men. Such a response has also been convenient for countries which, on legal, religious or social grounds, deny the existence of such relationships; in this many Southern governments have been complicit. Western `politics of identity', where to be lesbian, gay or bisexual is a major determinant in the lives of individuals, is incomprehensible to many other societies. Other roles are often so much more central than sexual orientation -- people are Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist or Christian. They are mother, daughter, wife, father, husband, son... Among the majority in Africa, India and China, men who have sex with men exist to an extent that is largely unknown. But despite the urgency of dealing with HIV / AIDS, it is important not to oversexualize relationships between men in the South -- affection, tenderness, friendship have great subtlety in societies where homoeroticism and homo-affectivity have never been called `homosexual'. Also, the majority of male-male sexual relationships do not involve anal intercourse...

Cruising Geography: a queer glance at geography's orientation by Glen S. Elder  (Department of Geography, University of Vermont) - Homosexuality and Human Cultural Evolution. - The Evolution of Homosexuality.- The Etiology of Homosexuality (and divorce and ...) - What Ever Happened to Ritual Homosexuality? The Incitement of Modern Sexual Subjects in Melanesia and Elsewhere (Word 97 Download N/A, Author's Home Page):  What Ever Happened to Ritualized Homosexuality? Annual Review of Sex Research 14:137-159. - An example of another form of male homosexuality that may soon be destroyed because it is at odds with recently invented/created western 'gay' concepts: Suck My Nation: Masculinity, Ethnicity and the Politics of (Homo)sex (Abstract, Full Text, PDF Download). Deceivers at work? ... Get over the colonialization thing. Globalization isn't about being dominated by the American bogeyman - it's about being modern.  Does "modern" mean being like Western Europeans, Americans, Canadians, and Australians? - The Civilized Homosexual: Travel Talk and the Project of Gay Identity. - Making Queer for the United States of Empire.

A Dangerous Knowing: Sexuality, Pedagogy and Popular Culture - 2000 - edited by Debbie Epstein, James T. Sears. -Book Description: "As educators and theorists cross borders to think critically about sexualities and breakdown disciplinary and conventional boundaries, we are beginning to teach, think, and theorise about sexuality from various cultural, educational, and theoretical perspectives. A Dangerous Knowing assembles leading scholars and educational practitioners to pen analytic and/or descriptive essays that contextualise, problematise, or describe teaching sexualities, with a particular focus on Anglophone traditions. While there has been considered and rightful challenge of this tradition as variously incarnated across time and cultures (e.g., Euro-Americanism, Westernism, Capitalism, Eurocentrism, Modernism), its hegemony in moulding sexual discourse and mapping sexual boundaries is unquestioned... Here "pedagogy" is defined in its broadest sense to include not only formal education but the socialising influences of the mass media, technology, peers, and family. The "Master Narrative" embodies the Western and Northern European experience: its symbols and meanings, behaviours and artifacts, language and texts..." - An explosion of Thai identities: global queering and re-imagining queer theory: By mapping the proliferation of Thai gender/sex categories from the 1960s to the 1980s, the paper shows that Thai homoeroticisms are not converging towards Western models and points to the cultural limits of Foucauldian-modelled histories of sexuality. In particular, it demonstrates the inability of Foucauldian history of sexuality, and queer theoretical approaches drawing on Foucault, to account for shifts in Thai discourses in which gender and sexuality do not exist as distinct categories...

Queer Existence under Global Governance: Or, Is Global Governance Bad for Asian Queers: "The talk will center upon two major points: (1) the emerging global hegemony of morality that has quantum-leaped its assault on queer representations and queer interaction by bringing into place new legislations and litigations against them, as well as mobilizing and transforming conservative vigilance into an active surveillance network against any non-normaive sexuality; (2) the construction of child protection as a universal imperative that in actuality works both to re-enforce heterosexual monogamy and to debunk cultural diversity as inherently confusing and thus harmful for children. While global governance, as its proponents claim, may signal the weakening of state power and domination in certain national contexts; global governance, envisioned as a benign network of collaboration among the various segments of civil society, has more often than not instigated a new form of power and surveillance which has proven to be especially inimical to queers. And it is in relation to this new global development that Asian queer theory and queer activism must reconfigure their scope and engagement...."

El Menyawi H (2006). Activism from the closet: gay rights strategising in Egypt. Melbourne Journal of International Law, 7.  PDF Download. Abstract: Recently the Egyptian Government has been systematically attacking gays by putting them on trial, detaining and torturing them. The author suspects that there are two reasons behind the Government’s attacks of gay men: firstly, as a strategy to divert attention from its failure to address the declining economic situation in Egypt, and secondly, to increase the perception that it takes the Islamic faith seriously. The latter is particularly important to the Egyptian Government as it owes its increasing popularity largely to the Muslim Brotherhood. By attacking gays, the Egyptian State successfully distracted the public’s attention from its woes, while also shoring up the State’s Islamic credentials. The author also considers mistakes made when engaging in gay rights activism before his ultimate exile from Egypt. The author, who used the language of gay identity and of ‘coming out of the closet’ as part of his activism, examines the problems associated with such language. In particular, the author points out that by deploying the language of gay identity, he played into the hands of the Egyptian State, which then successfully appropriated the same language to distract the Egyptian public from its own problems. The author considers the problems with his activism to be his engaging in a ‘Stonewall’ model of gay rights in which one openly comes out of the closet and declares one is gay. The author concludes by considering a new form of activism that is not open, but hidden, which he calls ‘activism from the closet’. The hope behind the article is to allow LBGTQ groups to express their sexuality, as well as engage in activism, while reducing potential threats directed at them.

Blame game's repercussions: "I might be able to shrug off all this finger-pointing, not matter how outlandish, were the consequences not so dire. But across the globe, gays remain the eternal outsiders, enemy of the family, the nation and God. This characterization of homosexuality represents a disturbing fantasy of who homosexuals are, but has nothing to do with actual lesbians and gay men. Unfortunately, the fantasy makes it easier to deny gays the right to marry, raise children, or walk down the street without being assaulted. The fantasy has a life of its own, bolstered by politicians, preachers and thugs, all of whom attack gay people with impunity. And when gays anywhere are blamed, gays everywhere are held accountable. I can't help but wonder: Who benefits from this illusion about what homosexuals are? How does it serve the world to continually denigrate gay people? And what will it take to stop it?

What it means to be gay - homosexuality and HIV in India: - Does homosexuality vary around the world? Do different patterns of homosexual behaviour demand new approaches to HIV prevention? ... Many gay men in the West define themselves by their sexuality: you are either gay or straight. But the situation in India is more complex. There are several patterns of homosexual behaviour. The standard model of collective action against HIV is impractical here. While homosexuality in India is taboo and covert, it is not uncommon for men to have sex with men. They do not necessarily consider themselves to be homosexual... Policy-makers engaged in the fight against AIDS in the developing world should not assume that the Western version of homosexuality is relevant. - The Myth of the Heterosexual - 2001 - by Holt N Parker.

Perspectives on males who have sex with males in Bangladesh and India (PDF Download): In the field of developing HIV/AIDS prevention strategies, discussions on heterosexuality, bisexuality and homosexuality, "straight" or "gay", appear to form clear cut distinctions in terms of sexual behaviours which are often conflated with sexual identities (11). The lesbian and gay "movement" has been globalised (12) while in India several gay and lesbian groups have been established... Within these groups, formed more often than not by those from the English speaking middle classes, Western terms are used almost exclusively, and the context of discussions relate to Western understandings of gay identities, gay rights, gay lifestyles. You may hear a term such as hamjinsi or samlingi (14) but these are contemporary transliterations of the word homosexual. You may also hear the phrase "he is a gay" or "he has gay sex" or "he likes homosex", but these refer to sexual acts more than a sense of personal identity.Who is gay in an Indian context? What is a gay? Who is a homosexual? In a recent survey amongst truck drivers in North Pakistan, some 72% admitted they had sex with other males, whilst 76% stated they had sex with female sex workers (15) . Are these 72% gay? Homosexual? There is sufficient anecdotal evidence to indicate that in the other countries of the sub-continent similar levels of male to male sexual behaviours exist as a part of a broader sexual repertoire. Are these males bisexuals? Do the use of these terms carry the same meaning and significance as they do say in New York, London, Sydney? In the context of developing and delivering sexual health services for males who have sex with other males, the questions become extremely relevant, for any answers given will determine the shape and content of the delivery of such services. In working with sexual health issues in India and listening to the polemics of UNAIDS representatives, international donor agencies, the Indian medical profession, and many Western and Indian gay men, the often unthought through assumption is that same-gender sexual behaviours must mean the person is a homosexual, or gay, while male to female sexual behaviour must mean that the person is a heterosexual. In this construct, procreative "heterosexuality" is seen as normative and "normal", the rest is perverse and foreign. However these constructs seem to have very little contemporary or historical validity in India (and even to some extent in the West). This reductionist ideology is a recent invention from the 19th century which has consequently acted to reduce the rich diversity of alternate sexualities (16). Closer analysis of these debates seems to me to indicate a confusion between sexual behaviours, genders, self-identity formation, and cross-cultural validity, and within such confusion there may well be elements of neocolonialism, racism and Western imperialism (17).

Western lenses on male same-sex relationality in Pashtun Afghanistan (PDF Download): "Relations between adolescent males and adult men in Pashtun culture is a mode of relationality that falls outside both the Eurocentrism and heteronormativity of the traditional kinship studies model... Thus, it is not surprising that these anthropological studies of Pashtun culture do not include any references to male same-sex sexual relationships, or of any male same-sex relationality outside of the traditional family model. The Pakistani anthropologist Sarah Safdar has written one of the few English-language works on the topic of kinship in Pashtun society, which was published in 1997. Her extensive discussion of kinship and marriage in Pashtun culture contains no references to homosexuality or any male same-sex relationality other than blood kinship... David Halperin’s genealogical approach to the history of male same-sex sexual desire can be applied to cross-cultural analysis of relational modes such as male same-sex sexual relationality in Pashtun Afghanistan to give a more nuanced view than that of either Euro-American news media or anthropological accounts... He shows how this modern concept of homosexuality unconsciously restricts contemporary Euro-American inquiries into same-sex sexuality and denies the many forms of relationality and sexual desire that have existed in other historical moments... This inquiry shows that existing Western lenses on male same-sex relationality in Pashtun Afghanistan to be inadequate and problematic, and that drawing from queer genealogical strategies in conjunction with reconfigurations of kinship studies can provide a framework to analyze these relationships... Likewise, new kinship studies could provide anthropological accounts of male same-sex sexuality in Pashtun culture that could also help to destabilize the hegemony of Euro-American sexual categories, but that would also require new studies of kinship in Afghanistan. Without any new research or field work on the topic of male same-sex sexuality in Pashtun Afghanistan, it seems extremely difficult to understand or think about this mode of relationality and compare it with Euro-American modern homosexuality and Western prehomosexual categories." - Afghanistan: Nightmare Future: "If the United Nations, puppet of the neoliberal governments, succeeds in reshaping Afghanistan, its indigenous form of homosexuality will be wiped out, destroyed with the same brutality which marked the destruction of the great mosques by troops of the British empire 120 years ago."

Of Queer Import(s): Sexualities, Genders and Rights in Asia. - Introduction: Of Queer Import(s): Inspired by the tension that inheres in statements such as Indonesian gay rights activist Dédé Oetomo's assertion, 'I'm gay when I'm speaking English... Do queer identities, communities and cultures transcend the East/West divide? Or is this divide politically useful for local resistance to the globalisation of queer identities... The concept of queer has itself been a linguistically and culturally elitist concept to many non-English speaking tongzhi in the city... Although language issues were addressed by and were clearly a significant concern of the Bangkok conference organisers, their acceptance of English as a regional lingua franca was such that, while the organisers saw the need to outline the language policy, they saw no need to justify the choice of English as the official language... What the experience at the Bangkok conference suggests is not the need to find a lingua franca other than English for Asian Queer Studies. Instead, if we are to create a field that truly seeks to unite scholars as well as activists under an 'Asian queer' banner, what is called for is a far greater sensitivity, among native speakers and non-native speakers alike, to practical measures that can be taken on the ground to facilitate actual inter-Asian, inter-cultural, indeed, inter-queer communication... In the nascent field of Asian Queer Studies, it remains to be seen, however, the extent to which, in trans- and inter-Asian contexts, English will ultimately function to limit or liberate discourse on Asian queer lives...  - Queering Asia: This essay proposes to analyse queer life in Asia by focusing on the Asian region itself, asking how queerness is constituted by conditions and flows within the geopolitically constructed region of Asia. This proposal is at once simple and complicated. Simply, it suggests that a focus on the region (understood in a post-Orientalist and transnational way) provides an overlooked counterweight to Eurocentric, Western hegemonic frames for gay, lesbian, transgender or queer worlds in Asia...

The Magic Begins to Fade, Ponorogo, Indonesia:  Homosexuality is a delicate topic in conservative, Islamic Indonesia. But until recently that wasn't the case in Ponorogo, a small town east of Yogyakarta. One of the more prestigious occupations in the area has traditionally been that of warok, a man believed to have mystical powers who stages ritual dances in order to bring good fortune to the community. His dancers were once attractive boys aged 10 to 16. The warok himself maintained his mystical powers by sleeping with the boys, who had their own title: gemblak. But the warok of Ponorogo are becoming a thing of the past. As modern times bring a new openness to gays in Indonesia's big cities, they have almost shut down one of the country's longest-running homosexual traditions. Warok still live and work in Ponorogo, but they're not encouraged to live with gemblak anymore. Girls have replaced boys in the ritual dances, which themselves have evolved from meaningful rites into gaudy exhibitions for visiting tourists... - Reog Ponorogo Spirituality, Sexuality, and Power in a Javanese Performance Tradition.

Modern gay men in Indonesia learn to live alongside traditional concepts of homosexuality (Archive Link): We started by publishing a newsletter. Clearly the name Lambda Indonesia has the connotations of Stonewall, Gay Liberation and all that. I was then in upstate New York in Cornell, where I came out and I was influenced by all the gay liberation literature at the time. I was part of a campus gay group and so my concepts were very Western. From the very beginning I was criticised by gay, Western Indonesianists and by a professor of Anthropology in Surabaya I met around that time. These people asked, 'Why the Western model?'. They argued that in many parts of Indonesia, men have always had relationships with men - not only just casual sex but relationships - and there has never been a problem, so why set up something like this?'... We started looking around and quickly found that especially in those days, the early 80s, there was a clear distinction between the men who were homo and gay (the term 'gay' was starting to be used in Indonesia by then) and waria/ banci ('transgendered people'? - some of them have had operations, some are transvestites). Particularly around 1981, the men in the homo communities said that they only liked to sleep with laki-laki asli (real men/ macho men/ genuine men). If a homo slept with another homo then the two men would be considered 'lesbian'. People did it, but it wasn't acceptable! In Surabaya where I live the homo community at that time was gathering at nights (especially on Thursday and Saturday nights) in a school yard. And around the corner would be the banci or the waria... Nevertheless, in Southeast Asia in general, the old tolerance is still there. There is no queer bashing although there is police extortion. The police might round up about 25 people, have sex with them in the police station and that's significant and then ask for money. I'm not saying the police are always the penetrators, the police can be penetrated, the army guys can be penetrated, and they ask to be penetrated sometimes...

The Wedding Banquet Effect: Gay = Modern in Asian Cinema? (Chris Berry, Goldsmiths College) (Abstract, Must Scroll: PDF Download. Full text): "The global box office success of The Wedding Banquet has inspired a host of follow-up films, and it has been claimed as the founding film for the trend known as Queer or Gay Asian Cinema. Examples of films in The Wedding Banquet mode include the recent Rainbow from Thailand and Arisan from Indonesia, as well as the earlier Broken Branches from Korea and various Japanese films including Okoge and Twinkle. It has not escaped the attention of critics that not only do these films display upper middle class lifestyles but also that they represent a post-Stonewall Euro-American model of gay identity. This takes the argument one step further by noting that these two tropes are combined to produce a more distinctive rhetorical effect in the context of East and Southeast Asian metropolitan participation in globalized modernity. A post-Stonewall gay identity does not just occupy the same social and textual space as globalized modernity in these films but also actually signifies the ability to accept a post-Stonewall gay identity on the part of others and sustain a gay lifestyle on the part of the protagonists signifies the attainment of the globalized modernity so desired by the ruling classes and their adherents in metropolitan East and Southeast Asia. Ironically, this confirms the derogatory stereotypes displayed in commercial mass cinema, at the same time as it may be a powerful rhetorical tool for placing leverage upon the ruling classes."

Playing in the Dark: Korean "Gay" Men and "Gay" Korean Bathhouses (Song Pae Cho, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) (Abstract, Must Scroll: PDF Download. Full text): "Gay experience and urban modernity are uniquely intertwined, with the latter providing the staging ground for sexual experimentation and openness in ways that permit a kind of emergent gay democracy. Within the urban setting, gay men have had the opportunity to meet other men and create social practices and institutions that constitute the “gay experience.” Among these varied practices has been the practice of “public” sex, queering the often marginalized and abjected spaces of urban settings such as deserted lots, parks, and public bathrooms into a stage for sexual encounters and connections between men. Even though the mainstream gay and lesbian movement in South Korea has often disparaged these spaces in favour of more “formal” rights and markers of “gay citizenship,” in this paper, I argue that it is, in fact, the “wild” and “unregulated” spaces that often exist only provisionally and both within as well as outside the field of gay commodification, that we can see the practices of gay democracy and public gay society-making. Using ethnography from “gay” bathhouses in Seoul, Korea, I argue that these spaces where queer desire sometimes takes us by surprise can open ourselves up to the pleasure of inter-class and inter-generational contact as well as the possibility of imagining other forms of sociality. However, they can also reveal the limits of Western notions of “gay identity,” and “gay community.”

Globalizing Gay Culture in Virtual Space: the Case of the Virtualized Gay Identity (Nikos Lexis Dacanay, University of the Philippines) (Abstract, Must Scroll: PDF Download. Full text): "My paper is about the virtualization of the everyday experience of the city and how the expression of gay identity is implicated in the setup. I want to understand the complex relationships between the influence of the global phenomenon of virtual space to the internationalization of gay identity and the re-modification of the concept of such an identity in the local understanding of sexuality. There has been much talk about the internationalization of American-modeled gay lifestyle and this would presume to indicate a globalization of modern gay identitiy. My argument is that the operations of sex and g