Parliamentary election in Armenia #armvote17 and LGBT rights

I have no much hopes left for elections in Armenia under current circumstances.

I know that at the end it will be the ruling Republican party and related to them & ex-president Kocharyan Prosperous Armenia party that will have a majority share in the next parliament.

I know that this election will not be clean and fair. Yet another “step forward” blah-blah…

I do not have a favourite party or political alliance to endorse. But the following list is my definite DO NOT VOTE for:

• Republican party of Armenia 
• Tsarukyan alliance (Prosperous Armenia) 
• ARF Dashnaktsutyun 
• Armenian Renaissance (‘re-branding’ of Orinats Yerkir by disgraced Artur Baghdasaryan)
• Communist party. The only political party that explicitly included anti-LGBT statement within their election programme (կուսակցությունը պատրաստվում է «պայքարել համասեռամոլության, տրանսգենդերների» դեմ)։

This is the first election in Armenia when political parties or their reps are being questioned by civil society activists and some media outlets on their attitude towards LGBT rights as part of election campaign.

Of course, we are not there yet when LGBT Armenians would be perceived as powerful force that could influence the election results. For this we need free and fair election system in place, and much more vocal and open presence of LGBT people in the country. However, this is a step in the right direction.

4 political parties/alliances (out of 9 participating in this parliamentary election) replied to the pre-election survey of the “Partnership for Open Society” initiative: Ohanyan-Raffi-Oskanian (ORO) alliance; Yelq (“Way Out”) alliance; Free democrats; and ARF Dashnaktsutyun. They all answered ‘Yes’ to the question on whether LGBT people should have the same rights as other citizens. However, I will never trust that ARF Dashnaktsutyun in Armenia genuinely believes in equal rights of all citizens until and unless they come clean re their high level reps support for DIY firebombers. Instead of reprimanding them, those homophobic reps remained on the highest positions in the party's Armenian branch and even got promoted to the ministerial level within the government as part of their alliance with the ruling Republican party.

Of course, it’s one thing to answer ‘Yes’ to a non-binding general question, it’s another thing to find out the substance of their stance.

lgbtnews.am keeps doing great job in challenging MPs, NGOs and other politicians and civil society representatives in Armenia on LGBT rights.

In the context of upcoming parliamentary election, they questioned so far ORO, Yelq and Congress/PPA alliance reps. The most straightforward answer was presented by ORO rep Hovsep Khurshudyan. To note, Hovsep of Zharangutyun (“Heritage”) party consistently (and not only during election period) supported human rights issues in Armenia, including LGBT rights, although it is not clear whether his views represent views of the alliance or rather some in Zharangutyun party. I have no doubts that head of Zharangutyun party Raffi Hovhannisyan genuinely supports LGBT rights too. I will never forget his appearance in front of gay-friendly DIY bar in Yerevan soon after firebombing. However, I have no idea, for instance, what ex-MoD Seyran Ohanyan’s views are regarding this matter.

Congress/PPA alliance (LTP) rep Arman Musinyan did not clearly answer to the similar question although in general terms voiced firmly against discrimination of all citizens.

Questioned more specifically re LGBT rights Yelq rep Alen Simonyan reiterated the position of their alliance about equal rights and human rights for all but resisted attempts to single out any specific group.

Progress in Tbilisi: Presidential candidates in Georgia questioned on gay rights

Impressed that presidential candidates in Georgia were questioned on their views re "sexual minority rights". This is in itself a progress. Example to other countries in the region.

For the first time in the region, both main candidates were not afraid of publicly expressing their stance re LGBT rights, especially as this was generally in line with the protection of human rights for all and non-discrimination. They were not afraid that their views could alienate voters in a country where homophobia is widespread and fueled by highly influential Orthodox church.

However, in comparison, I consider the answer of Giorgi Margvelashvili (Georgian Dream) to be the best out of all candidates.

Sexual minority rights 

"What do you think on protection of sexual minority rights and their better integration in socio-political life?"

*WWW.PREZIDENTI.GE has been created to foster an informed political debate on the issues that are important to the Georgian society for upcoming Presidential Elections of October, 27. The Project: Support to the Development of Democratic Institutions in the South Caucasus is funded by the Embassy of Kingdom of the Netherlands to Georgia.

To these ends, the Netherlands Institute for Multiparty Democracy (NIMD) invited the registered presidential candidates to respond to 20 specific and policy related questions. Every candidate could have provided no more than 250 words when answering each of these questions.Website is available in 4 languages: Georgian, Armenian, Azeri and English.

Main candidates

Margvelashvili Giorgi » represents current PM Bidzina Ivanishvili’s Georgian Dream party
The objective of a democratic state is to protect the rights of every citizen. The protection of minority rights should be specially emphasised. The modern democracy consists in balancing rule by majority with the protection of minority. It takes a lot of attention and efforts to ensure that decisions made by majority do not restrict the minority rights. The government should never allow any discrimination, persecution or oppression of humans on any grounds. At the same time, it must create conditions for full and creative self-expression of every human being.

Bakradze David » represents the outgoing president Saakashvili’s United National Movement 
The UNM considers any discrimination, any restrictions of political and civil rights on any grounds as inacceptable. While remaining faithful to the essence of common beliefs about family relationships, it condemns any violence and expressions of xenophobia against members of sexual minorities.

Other candidates

Asatiani Akaki » Union of Georgian Traditionalists 
According to current Georgian legislation, the rights of sexual minorities are protected. Our task would be to steadily follow the legislation.

Bobokhidze Teimuraz » Initiative group 
The Georgian legislation, to the extent I know, does not put any restriction to the right of sexual minorities. Some people think the violation of right is the fact that representative of these minorities does not have the right to go through a service of marriage and to live together without benefit of clergy. Well, I believe they are allowed to get employed; they have free, unimpeded access to schools and colleges. If there are not, then it is up to the court of law to decide what the matter is in each specific case.

Burjanadze Nino » Democratic Movement - United Georgia
The persons of non-traditional sexual orientation should enjoy the same rights guaranteed by the Constitution of Georgia and shall have the same responsibilities, as the citizens of traditional orientation. In Georgia it's always been and will always be so. The President should be the guarantor and protector of rights of each citizen.

Chikhladze Giorgi » Initiative group 
All citizens of Georgia have equal rights of participation in social life, despite their sexual orientation. The equality of rights is protected by the law, based on respective protective mechanisms.

Javakhidze Sergo » Justice for Georgia 
The state shall care for its citizens including the rights of its sexual minorities and shall facilitate their integration into political and social life.

Kharatishvili Zurab » European Democrats of Georgia
Georgia is a part of the Christian civilization and lives according to the respective rules. Such values as inviolability of life, right of property, institute of family, personal and national dignity are important for us. I think that each person should feel him/her a worthy member of a society, and difference according to this or that feature must not be a basis of violation or restriction of right. More exactly, we will not restrict anybody by ethnic affiliation and will not announce nontraditional sexual orientation a criminal offence. This concerns the private affair of a person and is not a business of the state or policy. The state on the one hand must ensure strengthening of the state status of the Georgian language, and on the other hand -finance and promote learning of Georgian by the ethnic minorities. As well, the state must in every way strengthen the institute of traditional family and on the other hand - do not allow violation in respect of people with nontraditional sexual orientation. At the same time it should be mentioned that we will not support the institute of same-sex marriage, because this contradicts the traditional concept of a marriage. Why we should change the contents of the concept of a marriage? We know that a marriage is a union between man and woman.  In the same-sex marriage this means the union of two any person.  In such case I would ask - why only two? It is understandable that this carries us to the point of absurdity.

Margiani Avtandili » Initiative group 
Historically the rights of sexual minorities in Georgia have never been violated, it is not violated now and considering the general tolerance of our nation, it will not be violated in the future. Being a sexual minority always meant maintaining of low profile or keeping of one’s private life in secret. Advertising and arrangement of sexual minority demonstrations/parades will facilitate debauchery, which shall be prohibited from moral standpoint.

Mzhavia Teimuraz » Christian-Democratic People’s Party 
The given question has several aspects - a right in general, exercising of the right and argumentation of the conceptual approach to the issue. The right of the sexual minorities to carry out actions corresponding to their own choice, is regulated by the appropriate legislative act „The framework convention of the Council of Europe concerning protection of the sexual minorities“, which does not allow anybody to interfere in the above mentioned choice, and in my opinion also envisages that representatives of the sexual minorities may not demand from the so called sexual majority in this or that form unconditional recognition of their choice. This provision is unequivocally written in the above mentioned legislative act. I think the state should actively participate in balancing of differing interests. Otherwise its activity will not be justified, and as to the issue of provision of their equal rights in the social-political life of the country, it is to be considered in the context of protection of rights of any men/women. The basis of the main argument of my conceptual approach to the given issue, as the concrete citizen, is the unconditional recognition of the fact that the first source of  development of the world or maintenance of its viability, of evolution itinerary and the dynamics of dialectic regularities, that from the scientific point of view unconditionally depends on male and female relations not only in the biological organic sector of the world, but, as the modern science states, even in its inorganic part itself; when a human being opposes the stable foundations of the evolution  of a man, it calls into question even the perspective of existence of the man. I would state sincerely that I do not want that the mankind be in front of the choice, when his right will be on one  dish of scales, and on the other - an issue of his/her very existence in the world.

Natelashvili Shalva » Labour party of Georgia
Representatives of sexual minorities in Georgia have always participated in social and political life, they are inseparable parts of the social and political development of our country today, and I am sure they neither have nor had any problems with that. However, I do not think it is either fair or correct to demonstrate your sexual orientation in the streets having said that, I oppose any kind of violence.

Saluashvili Mikheil » Initiative group
Every citizen of Georgia, regardless of his sexual orientation paraded or covered, should have the equal rights. According to the Christian morality, it is necessary to fight against any form of sin, and not the person who committed this sin.

Targamadze Giorgi » Christian-Democratic Movement
Private life is inviolable. Therefore, the state cannot interfere unduly with the establishment of sexual orientation of specific people and their participation into social or political life. However, if equality means civil legal relationship such as marriage, then adopting children by same sex couples is naturally absolutely inacceptable. On the contrary, draft constitutional amendment had been proposed, pursuant to which the state shall recognize and uphold the marriage only between a woman and a man. Current edition of the Constitution does not specify the parties of the marriage and stipulates their equal rights only. Therefore, according to researchers’ opinion, Civil Code contradicts with the Constitution of Georgia and chances to win the case of an individual appeal to the Constitutional Court are very high. Thus, same sex marriage can be considered legal in Georgia not through the adoption of certain bylaws, but by announcing the existing norm as an un-constitutional. Suggested draft involves the edition of the Constitutional norm that is accepted by the Constitution of EU member countries, such as Lithuania, Latvia and Hungary.

How homophobia backfired: presidential election challenger Raffi stands up for human rights in Armenia

Here we are. Certain someone (tabloid editor, MP from the ruling Republican party) tried playing homophobia card against Armenia presidential election challenger, head of Heritage party Raffi Hovhannisyan but... shot himself in the foot.

That certain someone was Hayk Babukhanyan, or “babakh” (there are different variations of his nickname). In a press conference, reflecting the outcome of presidential election, this guy claimed those who voted for Raffi are “gays or ignorant” people. That’s around 37% of voters, even if we take official figures. True, there are different versions of the exact wording he used (here and here) but the essence is the same. All was done to play homophobia card against Raffi.

As I said repeatedly in past, although I disagree with Raffi on number of internal and foreign issues, currently he is my favourite Armenian politician (compared to others in public view). I also respect immensely his post-DIY stance, when he came out in support, even though it was obvious this would not be in line with the majority of average voters and in defiance with the prevalent anti-gay hysteria. I will never forget his stance.

Back to “babakh”. His attempt backfired spectacularly and generated backlash against himself on and offline  (examples: here and here) and all over Facebook. Of course, many of the comments were not particularly gay friendly, but it was hilarious to see how this homophobic politician’s statement resulted in a totally unintended consequences against himself. Unsurprisingly, his own party (very small one, supporter of ruling Republican party) issued a statement denying that such claims have been made. Too late, “babakh”. Too late.

But forget “babakh”. He does not deserve much attention. What is the most important aspect in all this story is Raffi’s response to him and people like him.

In an interview with Kenton TV popular “Urvagits” programme, Raffi hit back at attacks on minority groups (from 30.00 mins - see video below):



“All Armenian citizens have the same protection under the Constitution.“

“We need a constitutional state, where everyone's interests and rights are protected, and whoever violates against any group, minority or majority, will answer before the law, including those dear gentlemen”.

 «Բոլոր հայերը, հայաստանցիները Սահմանադրության տակ ունեն միևնույն պաշտպանվածությունը: Եվ ով այդպես խոսում է ուրիշների մասին, իմ կարծիքով մեծ խնդիրներ ունի որպես հայ մարդ, որպես հայաստանցի:

 Մեզ պետք չէ կեղծ ազգայնականություն, ո՛չ էլ կեղծ ազատականություն: Մեզ պետք է սահմանադրական պետություն, որտեղ բոլորի շահերը, իրավունքները պաշտպանված են: Եվ ով ձեռք բարձրացնի որևէ խմբի նկատմամբ՝ փոքրամասնություն թե մեծամասնություն, ինքը պատասխան կտա օրենքի առջև, այդ թվում այդ հարգելի պարոնայք»: 

Raffi is an exceptional politician for Armenia. I may not agree with everything he says but he has guts to stand up for human rights.

Big respects!!

New issue of Georgian LGBT magazine “Me” highlights transgender rights and focuses on recent homophobic outbursts

“With the upcoming elections in spring 2010 homophobic sentiments obivously strengthen in Georgia. We have seen number of TV plots and articles that are to terorize LGBT community and contribute to its even greater stigmatization. We have witnessed these tendencies in parallel to ever increased visibility of the community.” - says the editorial.

You may read new 13th issue of Me magazine here.

Hate violence on the rise in Georgia ahead of municipal election in Tbilisi

Inclusive Foundation
Tbilisi, Georgia
05.05.2010

In the wake of upcoming municipal elections on the May 30th, a strong wave hate speech against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community has been unleashed forcefully by radical nationalist and religious groups in Georgia. We have witnessed several high profile cases in which Georgian politicians, parliamentarians, public figures and journalists have brought LGBT issues in politicized context, making LGBT community the target for defamation, disgrace and physical violence.

During the winter session of the Parliamentary Assembly of Council of Europe (PACE) the issue of hearing on the resolution on “Discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity” gave push to controversy in Georgia, thus prompting the leaders of several religious communities to condemn PACE’s intention to address the issue of homophobia. This criticism was immediately accelerated by Christian Democrat’s Movement, a political party represented in the Georgian Parliament. The Party misinterpreted resolution as obligatory instrument for recognizing same sex marriage and parental rights and was able to stir negative PR for the resolution in Georgia.

Several weeks later, new People’s Orthodox Movement was founded by Mr. Malkhaz Gulashvili, a newspaper publisher known for his close ties with the Russian authorities. His Moscow ties has frequently put him in a position when he needed to answer pressing questions about his fidelity to Georgian national interests. Instead of submitting direct answers, Mr. Gulashvili adopted a strategy to drive away from the discussion by irrelevantly scape-goating lesbians and gays, problematizing homosexuality and calling them perverts and sick. This has enabled him and his supporters redirect any public discussion from his own agenda. Mr. Gulashvili has dangerously partaken in into endless and shameless session of insult and defamation of his LGBT co nationals. He and other members of the movement have been outspoken rather radically, calling on punishing all who are, in his words “against orthodox beliefs and values”.

As a matter of fact, on the May 3rd 2010, International Press Freedom Day, extremist orthodox organizations: Peoples' Orthodox Movement and Orthodox Parents' Union organized rally in front of Ilia State University that later on was joined by two Mayoral candidates. They requested withdrawal of Irakli Deisadze’s book from the university bookstore. The newly published book is criticizing extremist orthodox ideology, allegedly including passages that may upset the feelings of Christian Orthodox believers. In addition, the protesters have requested to allocate place for Orthodox worship in the state university and demanded dismissal of University Rector Mr. Gigi Tevzadze. The latter, they claimed, drives the youth (meaning students) to perversion. Organizers disseminated information leaflets that presented excerpts from the book with the accent on content of the book that has homosexual allusions.

On May 4th 2010, responding to this attack on Ilia State University, a number of civil activists decided to stage flash mob in front of the same university to defend the freedom of expression and alert public about the fascistic hysteria in the country. They feared that demanding to ban a piece of publication from the university bookstore is an extremely alarming signal of infringement of one’s constitutional and inalienable right to free expression and access to information.

During the May 4th demonstration, several persons from People’s Orthodox Movement joined the mob and attempted to disrupt it. Later on, members of extremist groups, they steadily outnumbered the civil activists, have started targeting organizers and participants. Street bullying has taken place, coupled with anti-gay slogans and chase, beating and otherwise attacks on civil activists physical and mental integrity. This has happened regardless of the fact that the mob aimed at supporting general freedom of speech and not any particular groups' rights. In other words, this was not an LGBT demonstration whatsoever. Police have not interfered adequately, they only tried to separate individuals when fight have become extreme. Neither did they stop perpetrators from limiting right of free assembly of mob participants. In addition to this they made participants leave the territory while letting perpetrators remain in control of the vicinity until they made sure mob was disrupted.

Several participants were severely beaten up in front of police officers, others were chased in the street by perpetrators with knives in their hands. Perpetrators were individually asking about participants sexual orientation while targeting them. While doing so, they have been threatening with physical liquidation and sexual assault. Several persons have suffered brain concoction and corporal injuries. Some have been targeted on following day in their neighborhoods after been identified through television coverage.

We appeal to the relevant authorities in Georgia to denounce their position on impunity policy in relation to these extremist groups over last two years. None of the members of these groups have been punished or held otherwise accountable. This is contributing to increasingly threatening violent actions on their behalf. They simply grew stronger and are equipped with the sense of moral supremacy since the politicians, the judiciary and the general public not only denounce their disruptive actions, but silently side with them.

We appeal to diplomatic missions in Georgia to raise this issue with the Georgian authorities. We also appeal to the representation of the Council of Europe to remind Georgia of its obligation to respect human rights and dignity of its citizens. We urge the EU institutions to reflect on this incident during evaluating progress of European Neighborhood Policy National Action Plan, in the process of bilateral Human Rights Dialogue, and in the frames of Eastern Partnership talks. We will include this incident in shadow report when Georgia undergoes Universal Periodic Review with UN Human Rights Council.

We appeal to human rights groups worldwide to address Georgia’s diplomatic representations abroad, and to ask them condemn hate biased violence against any person in Georgia, exacerbated by the impunity Georgian state has delegated to extremist groups.

*pictures - by Paata Sabelashvili

Georgia: scapegoating gays for internal politics. Interview with gay rights activist Paata Sabelashvili

All too familiar scapegoating gays for internal politics to distract citizens from real problems facing the country and from their [politicians & co] own bankruptcy .

*via Georgian International Media Centre

Scapegoating gay people for Georgia's crisis

Elections are meant to be the chance for the people to express their views without fear.

But elections can also be a time of heightened fear and threat: especially for those in a minority in a society in crisis, argues Paata Sabelashvili, president of the Inclusive Foundation – Georgia’s lesbian and gay rights campaign and the only open gay rights organisation in the Caucasus.

Homosexuality is legal in Georgia – but the rights of lesbians, gay men and transgendered people are under attack. Sabelashvili was personally targeted by the police recently, the Inclusive Foundation’s offices raided, staff and clients intimidated and insulted and the office damaged. Arrested on the scene, Sabelashvili says he was only released from prison after he agreed to a plea bargain which saw him admit to a marijuana possession charge.

He says that the drugs charge was a cover for an attack on the Inclusive Foundation that was designed to appease nationalist and conservative forces aligned with the Georgian Orthodox Church’s campaign against gay rights. With the government under pressure in the backwash of the Tea Tutberidze affair and a visible break down of relations with the Patriarch, it may well be that such actions help shore up the government’s support with more conservative voters.

But while the government seems to play both sides in this debate – President Saakashvili has recently been citing his government’s legalisation of homosexuality as a positive step forward, but only to audiences outside Georgia – others see “gay bashing” as a way of winning votes.

In parliament the Christian Democrats have called for homosexuality to be recriminalised (a move that would see Georgia expelled from the Council of Europe) and, as Sabelashvili recounts in the video here, have promoted a scare campaign about gay marriage. Others – such as Malkhaz Gulashvili, publisher of the Daily Georgian Times and founder of the People’s Orthodox Movement – are campaigning for the same outcome outside parliament.

At the root of much of this, argues Sabelashvili, is the population crisis in Georgia. Using arguments completely discredited in the west, anti-gay campaigners, either out of prejudice or ignorance, claim that homosexuality is like some infection that spreads through the population and so cuts the birth rate. For them it needs to be suppressed.

But, as Sabelashvili says here, the real factor that is cutting the birth rate is the poverty that drives so many young Georgians away from their homeland and leaves them vulnerable when abroad.

When 2 Armenians battle election in California, and there is homophobia involved, Armenian community loses

Glendale News Press reports that the election took place last Tuesday to fill a vacant seat for the 43rd Assembly District in California, which includes most of Glendale, Burbank and parts of Los Angeles. Title of the report says it all: “Armenian candidates split vote”.

[...] at the headquarters of Democrats Nayiri Nahabedian and Chahe Keuroghelian, the strategy was clearly different. Campaign workers were focused on targeting one of the region’s largest voting bases — Armenian Americans, who are estimated to comprise about 30% of registered voters in the district, according to campaign workers.

Campaign workers for Nahabedian and Keuroghelian were primarily reaching out to Armenian residents over the phone, encouraging prospective voters to go to the polls. [...]

Still, the two candidates of Armenian descent ended up at the bottom of the polls, with Nahabedian winning 22% of votes and Keuroghelian taking about 14%. Ramani and Gatto, who made few efforts to reach out specifically to Armenian voters, combined to earn nearly two-thirds of all votes cast.

Garen Yegparian shares more insight on what was going on behind the scene. Apparently, homophobia might have played the role too. Below are selected exrtacts, via Asbarez:

"As always, the campaign for California’s 43rd Assembly District seat produced its share of interesting stories, from the heartwarming and inspiring to the weird and lurid. [...]

I’ve saved strangest for last, and this is only a sampling.  During the course of the campaign, I heard, admittedly second-hand, that some TV commentators were accusing Nayiri of supporting bestiality.  I suppose in their “minds” this fits in with her “unforgiveable” support of gay rights.  But the best one of these is the claim that Nayiri would eliminate the words “mother” and “father”.  This lulu I heard first hand when a caller asked me about it during the call-in time of an Armenian TV show, on which I was that day’s guest.  Then, on Election Day, in speaking to a poll worker at the first polling place I went to (small problem of signage directing people to the entrance had to be solved) I learned that the same issue was raised at an SEIU (one of the unions supporting Nayiri) meeting.  An Armenian woman had announced that she wouldn’t vote for Nayiri because she’d eliminated “mother” and “father” from the textbooks!  So this wasn’t just some operative spreading the word.  People ACTUALLY BELIEVED this stuff, else they’d never repeat it.  It’s fascinating, how out of touch with reality some people can be.

Let’s all work towards a more unified and saner community approach to future elections."

Green fashion: Italian designer Guillermo Mariotto's tribute to protesters in Iran

*source: Iranian.com

Italian designer Guillermo Mariotto appears with a T-shirt bearing "Neda Alive", while models wear a green ribbon and raise their hand with V signs, in honor of protesters killed in Iran.


*Thanks to A.P. for the link

Open letter by Homosexual Students of Universities in Iran to the international community

Via comment left on my previous post, below is an Open letter by Homosexual Students of Universities in Iran to the international community.


Distress and Despair in the Streets of Iran today:

Open letter By the Network of Homosexual University Students of Iran

To The International Community

The painful incidents of the past few days reached their peak today. On Saturday June 20, the Islamic regime carried its violations of human rights of the past 30 years even further. The People’s desire to choose their government peacefully in a fair election was frustrated by the Regime and the Supreme Leader with deception and imposition of force. This led to a silent protest after the election results shocked the whole country. In the streets of Tehran, miles and miles of tolerant, calm, and resolved masses, about 3 million strong, confronted the rigged election. This peaceful yet determined protest was met with brutal force by the regime’s strongmen, shooting from rooftops and windows.

What the People of Iran want is democracy and free elections even if these are secured within the framework of an Islamic Republic. But apparently, an Islamic Republic is unlikely to give way to democracy. Reports of the dead and wounded in last week’s attacks on civilians vary, but facts are available through eyewitness accounts, images captured on cell phones and cameras, and messages typed online. Most significant is not our numbers, but the fact that we are being shot down in the streets in front of everyone, or being cut open in the detention centers where the protesters are being taken. Video clips and photos displaying killing and wounding, slitting of throats or tearing of bodies require no captions.

Strongmen and military forces are attacking civilians, using all sorts of weapons from boiling water to bullets. The basij, plain-cloths cultural police recruited to enforce religious morality, are now attacking people in their homes at night.

The People are still calm and determined; they have vowed to take back their stolen votes and to stop the government’s fraud with their bodies. Since the Supreme Leader announced the election results a ‌definitive victory this Friday and ordered the People off the streets, the demonstrations have been perceived as open war on the legitimacy of the Regime itself. Tehran was a bloodbath today. Other large cities report assaults and military attacks on civilians; there are many fatalities.

In the hands of the Government today, the citizenry’ lives are as subjected to horrible violence, as is their hope for democracy and a just society. Following the Islamic Regime’s crackdown on university dormitories on the first three nights, five student activists, Mobian Ehterami, Kasra Sharafi, Kambiz Sho’a’ee, Fatemeh Baratee, and Mohsen Eemani were killed. The rest of the students murdered and wounded have not yet been named. By now, all outside Iran have had a chance to see images of the People’s silent screams and the torn and bleeding bodies of the same protestors. Those who were arrested or kidnapped and released wrote accounts of the horrors they experienced. Still we fear the grave reality is not yet understood by outsiders. We know that our realities can sound like passages from an Eastern tale. For this reason, queer students in Iran feel compelled to tell of these tragic measures to the world and to stand witness. As we mourn the loss of innocent protesters and worry about the fate and whereabouts of those who have been arrested and not yet released, we are proud of the patient, determined long lines of people displaying the most amazing face of a society which remains refined in the presence of utterly brutal circumstances. We are united in this and we are one voice demanding democracy. Those of us who are alive today live by chance. This calm and refined crowed is devastated and distressed today. We live in fear and we anticipate the worst.

If Ahmadinejad backed by the Supreme Leader managed a coup against the elected president of Iran Mir Hosein Musavi, and seeks to divert the course of democracy, our hope and our goal is to not allow this to happen. Now that the Assembly of Guardians has turned down the People’s demand for new elections, the fear is that if the protests are crushed, the regime will oppress individual freedoms and civil rights much more harshly than before. The Islamic Regime of Iran, with its history of human rights violations, suppression of minorities and targeting of homosexuality by threat of execution, has chosen to repress democratic aspirations and demolish civil institutions in order to further its control of People’s lives in a widespread, veiled brutality. This will culminate in the wounding of Iranian society as whole and from there it will compromise human rights symbols around the world.

The Homosexual community of Iran has been living under harsh conditions of harassment and fear. We identify with the pain the People endured this last week; those who fought back tears and kept calm under attacks and assaults in which silence was the most effective or only shield. These days, the Government is dismissing demands for justice, opening fire on people, and calling them “less then dust,” “dirt,” “dirty” and “fags,” eliciting years of dual oppression in the mind of homosexual community. Iranian queers have been struggling with the merciless oppressive Regime for years; we know very well what it means to endure cruelty. In recent days, the Islamic Regime has been treating people in the same way it has treated the queer community over the past three decades. It is with this understanding in mind and with a hope for a fair and free future based on equality that we fight side by side, hand in hand against the dictator. We urge the international LGBT community to hear our voice and hear the People of Iran in their demand for new elections. We ask the international LGBT community to assist us in alerting the world of the cruelties and the killings taking place in Iran during these days. We fear that in the days to come, if the dictator wins, a generation -- our generation -- will simply be eliminated.

These days, the queer movement of Iran is alongside the people’s movement. We are certain that the death of democracy in Iran will sooner or later mean the death of all humanity. We are certain that in the denial of civil and individual rights – as Ahamdinejad did in his first speech after his second round of his appointment to power, calling all protesters “thieves,” “ruffians”, and “fags” – all hopes for a civil society will be wiped out. Yet we live with the hope of rescuing Iran from the spread of fascism. On the fourth day of the Silent Resistance, one protester held a placard pronouncing: I’m not afraid of death, my fear is of life ... three days has passed already. Equality, social justice, respect for different ethnicities, religions, languages, and sexual minorities are indeed possible, if people are not denied their rights within the framework of democracy.

We ask the international community, the international LGBT community, and human rights organizations or the world to be watchful of the atrocities in the streets of Iran today, to respect the Iranian people’s vote and their wish to live in a democratic society, and to refuse to recognise Ahmadinejad as Iran’s elected president until a new election is held in the presence of UN monitors. We ask the UN to dispatch peacekeepers to safeguard the People’s lives.

We ask the international community to stand by us and to urge governments to respect the Iranian People and their vote, to refuse to recognise Ahmadinejad as Iran’s president until we have the opportunity to elect our president with our own votes. What we want is a new election. The People are resolved to take back their vote. For the people of Iran, particularly for the queer community and all other minorities, this is the only possible way forward.

Today the Iranian People are relying on their own capacity to resist and assert their quest for justice. This will not happen without the support of the international community.

Praised be the day when Iran is responsive and responsible for all its children and citizens.

In the name of freedom and social justice,

Homosexual Students of Universities in Iran

June 20, 2009

'Women rights' at Yerevan mayor election

Having a woman candidate for the post, Armenia pro-government Orinats Erkir party decided to exploit women rights & gender equality in its Yerevan mayor election campaign which formally launched today. Clever move, perhaps, but unfortunately this will not serve to promote women rights in Armenia, as this party is extremely discredited in the eyes of Yerevan residents. Or so I believe, and hope that they won't be able to fool people again, as they have done during the last presidential election acting as an 'opposition' party. They have never been known for their defense of human rights.

I remember...

1 March 08

Scout Tufankjian – Obama’s Armenian photographer

For details - see Unzipped

Armenia’s “Human Rights Day”

10 December – Human Rights Day, 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

For details - see Unzipped

Obama and McCain condoms

Be protected... now with 'political' condoms ;)

Madonna: it's time US says "I do" to gay marriage

AFP — Pop star Madonna said it was a shame the United States could put a black man in the White House but not allow same-sex marriage, rocking on her world tour with guests Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears.

Voters approved a proposal in Tuesday's presidential elections which amended the California's constitution to say that only marriages between men and women are recognized in the state.

The decision came only six months after California's Supreme Court overturned a previous ban on same-sex marriage, paving the way for thousands of gay and lesbian couples to tie the knot in the state.

"If we can elect an African-American as president, we can support gay marriage!," Madonna shouted to 20,000 fans at Dodger Stadium late Thursday, referring to president-elect Barack Obama. "Defeat Prop 8! We will not give up!."

*photo - via AFP

Small town in the US made history by electing nation's first openly transgender mayor

On the same day that the US elected its first black president, history was made also in a small American town Silverton, Oregon, where residents elected the first openly transgender mayor in the United States.

Fascinating story!

Fox News reported the story; more details via TransWorldNews:

A small town in Oregon has elected who is believed to be the first openly transgender mayor in the United States. Silverton, Oregon residents elected Stu Rasmussen as mayor.

Rasmussen is a heterosexual man but says he likes to dress as a woman. He has breast implants, long red hair, and wears high heels and skirts. "I identify mostly as a heterosexual male. But I just like to look like a female,” he explains."Some guys' mid-life crisis is motorcycles or sports cars or climbing mountains or trophy wives or whatever. I always wanted cleavage, so I went out and acquired some."

Rasmussen, who has a girlfriend, served two terms as the Mayor of Silverton in the 1990’s but had not admitted to being transgender. He says he only “came out” a few years ago.

Despite worrying about how his appearance would affect the election, Rasmussen won by 13 points.

"The first 30 seconds they think, am I in a freak show? Is there a camera behind me? What's going on here? And then we get down to discussing whatever the issue is - city business or business or whatever - and they figure out this guy's different, but he knows what he's talking about,” he says.

*source of photo

Inspirational: "I am American"

They proved that impossible is possible in America. They proved that ‘American dream’ exists. With all its shortcomings, this was a huge democratic exercise.

Over the last decade, and especially last years, US reputation fell down below the lowest possible denominator. It became a bad tone to say "I am American". No longer. At least for now, for me it sounds more like a compliment. Now they may proudly say: "I am American".

I knew that November is going to be a special month for me. It indeed turned out to be very special for personal/professional reasons. It's now very special for the 4th November too, double, triple special. It feels great, inspirational.

Expectations are so high of him that chances to get disappointed are very high too. Beginning of new era, or so I hope.

SJP for Obama

Sarah Jessica Parker of my favourite TV show Sex and The City joined volunteers at the Obama NY HQ to make calls to undecided voters, reports The Huffington Post (photo).

(disturbing!) Kiss of The Day

October cover of The Progressive magazine.

This is one of the most disturbing – even if made up – ‘kisses of the day’. Really.

*source of photo: Queerty

Vote Obama

Armenians for Obama'08

http://www.armeniansforobama.com