Police in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou arrested about 50 men on Mar 30 and 60 men on Apr 3 when it raided Renmin Gongyuan (People's Park/广州人民公园), a well known gay cruising venue.

According to a statement released by Aizhixing Institute, the men were taken to a police station for questioning although there were no specific charges laid. The statement claimed that after being pressured to give a reason for the raids, the police said that they were cracking down on "prostitution."

Chung To, the founder and chairperson of Hong Kong-based Chi Heng Foundation, a HIV/AIDS NGO which operates in China said in an email that five members of its MSM outreach team who were conducting its regular HIV prevention outreach in the park were taken to the police station on Mar 30; and another six volunteers were detained and interrogated on Apr 3.

"Taking them to the police station without any reason is unjustified. We are disappointed that this kind of police action still happens in China which hurts our HIV prevention outreach work," To said in the email.

No other details of the arrests and how long the men were detained are available.

In the Apr 4 statement, the Aizhixing Institute - a China-based HIV advocacy and awareness group founded by Dr Wan Yan Hai, a prominent AIDS activist, in 1994 - urged the police department to respect the civil rights of homosexuals in Guangzhou.

The statement read in part:

"We believe that the police have clear shown an act of discrimination and harassment towards the gay community during these raids and arrests, which should be condemned. We urge the police to stop such harassment immediately and educate police-officers with basic knowledge of HIV/AIDS prevention policies and civil rights concerning LGBT community to avoid misuse of power and human rights violation in their conduct.

"The police are deemed to have violated The Regulation on the Prevention and Treatment of HIV/AIDS, which was adopted at the 122nd executive meeting of the State Council on Jan 18, 2006 which came into force on Mar 1, 2006."

Related links (in Chinese) about the Guangzhou Renmin Gongyuan:

同性戀男子頻繁更換性伴侶患艾滋 (chinanews.sina.com):
A gay man recounts his experiences of Guangzhou's Renmin Gongyuan in the 1950s where men cruised each other for hookups and dates.

烈日下的广州人民公园同志角 (blog.boy007.com):
Pictures of the park taken by a gay man on a hot summer day last year and the activities that goes on in the crowded public toilet, the park's most popular cruising spot. The blogger estimates about 100 to 200 people during his visit on that weekend afternoon.

(广东同志)广州警方一周内两次带走同性恋者盘问 (Guangzhou Tongzhi):
The Guangzhou Tongzhi (a gay web site) recounted an exchange between a police officer and a Chi Heng volunteer after the officer admitted that they were acting on complaints about men having sex in the toilet to which the volunteer responded saying that the police need only to arrest those who have sex in public, and not everyone else. The policeman then suggested that the gay men should move to somewhere more private to have sex, such as Baiyun Hill and under the Haiyin Bridge. The volunteer then retorted that gays should have the right to chat and make friends anywhere they wish.