Fridae

Dutch migrants to watch gay kiss footage as part of attitude test
Would-be migrants to the Netherlands will soon have to watch a film that includes a film footage of two men kissing in a park, a topless female sunbather, among other and a quiz to test applicants' suitability for migration.

The DVD would form part of a new entrance test conducted in Dutch and covering the language and culture of Holland, The Times of London reported.

Immigration applicants are to watch the Dutch-language film, which has not been released, and then take a test asking them about the country Crown Princess Maxima comes from (answer: Argentina) and whether hitting women and female circumcision were permitted, among others on language and culture of Holland.

Muslim leaders have since denounced the new film test as a provocation aimed at limiting immigration.

"It really is a provocation aimed to limit immigration," Abdou Menebhi, director of an immigration-services group, told the paper. "They are trying to find every pretext to show that people should not come to the Netherlands because they are fundamentalist or not emancipated."

However, Jeroen Dijsselbloem, a socialist from the parliament's immigration committee, said the film had been created to help prepare people for "open-minded" attitudes on issues such as homosexuality. "We have lots of homo-discrimination, especially by Muslim youngsters who harass gay men and women on the streets. It is an issue here."

The measures were also prompted in part by outrage over the 2004 murder of Theo Van Gogh, a filmmaker who explored violence against women in Islamic societies, by a man with reported ties to a terrorist group. Several Muslim extremists were arrested in connection with the incident. The murder sparked a national debate about preserving Dutch culture in the face of a rising Muslim population.

Two years earlier, gay politician Pim Fortuyn, who became popular with voters in part because of his anti-immigration platform, was assassinated by a man who claimed Fortuyn was a threat to "vulnerable members of society."

Applicants can sit for the test at one of 138 embassies around the world. Those who pass the first stage will have to complete two additional "citizenship" tests over five years and swear a pledge of allegiance to Holland and its constitution.

A spokeswoman for the immigration ministry however said an edited version of the DVD would be available for showing in Middle Eastern countries such as Iran as it would be illegal to possess images of homosexuality.

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Singapore man marries Thai boyfriend
A tabloid has reported that a Singaporean man is planning to have a commitment ceremony with his Thai boyfriend in front of more than 70 close friends and family members, marking the first time a same-sex union is being reported by the local press.

Hairstylist Aaron Lim, 33, and Thai makeup artist Khomkrit Chaiwichit, 27, are expected to have a 'union party' on May 3 at a seaside bungalow in Singapore, The New Paper reported.

In a country where homosexual sex is outlawed, Lim is refreshingly open with being identified publicly, "Sure, you can publish my name and my picture. I don't see anything wrong with that," he told The New Paper on Sunday.

Acknowledging that most same-sex couples in the city-state are discreet about their unions, he added, "I know this will not be legally recognised here, but I'm only doing it for myself, so it doesn't matter what other people think."

"I just want to be happy, and for my close friends and family to share in my happiness, said Lim who had only dated women before meeting his partner known as Timmy at a Bangkok gay disco.

"Personally, it's because I want to make a commitment to Tim. I want to show him that I'm proud to be his partner and that my love is sincere.

"Also, it is out of respect for my friends and family members. In a way, I want to express my appreciation for their support all these years," said Lim who has been in a relationship with Tim for five years.

Lim's 51-year-old sister was quoting as saying, "Initially when they first got together, I thought it was strange. It's not conventional.

"But after a while, I could see my brother is happy. And as long as he's happy, it's enough for me. That's the most important thing."

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Red Cross calls for end to ban on gay blood donors
Officials from the American Red Cross (ARC) have called for an end to the federal government's ban on gay and bisexual blood donors.

A Food and Drug Administration (FDA) policy in place since 1985 bans donations from any man who's ever had sex with another man - even one time - since 1977.

Officials at a recent blood donation conference in Maryland has joined with the American Association of Blood Banks (AABB) and America's Blood Centers (ABC) to petition a FDA advisory panel to relax guidelines that ban gay blood donors and to request the implementation of guidelines that treat all donors equally.

"The AABB, ABC, and ARC believe that the current lifetime deferral for men who have had sex with other men is medically and scientifically unwarranted and recommend that deferral criteria be modified and made compatible with criteria for other groups at increased risk for sexual transmission of transfusion-transmitted infections," the groups said in a joint statement issued at the advisory panel meeting at the Behavior-Based Blood Donor Deferrals in the Era of Nucleic Acid Testing conference held March 9-10.

"From the perspective of eliciting an appropriate risk history for exposure to HIV and other sexually transmitted infections, the critical period is the three weeks immediately preceding donation and the length of this window period provides the scientific basis for deferral periods for at risk sexual behavior," says the joint statement.

"There is newer and more accurate testing available" since 2000, the last time the FDA considered the ban, says Ryland Dodge, ARC's director of biomedical communication.

US government officials as well as officials elsewhere who have had the ban challenged have frequently defended the ban saying that it was needed to guarantee the safety of donated blood in the country since gay men were significantly more likely to be infected with HIV than heterosexual men.

The AABB in 2000 lobbied for an end to the lifetime ban of gay blood donors, calling instead for a one-year deferral for all gay-male donors. The Red Cross, which supplies about half the US' blood supply, was opposed to the proposed change, but it now says that with better screening methods in place it is now comfortable in calling for an end to the gay ban.

The Red Cross now says that because of advances in blood-screening technology, the ban on gay blood donors is unnecessary since virtually all infected blood - from both heterosexual and gay donors - is caught in the screening process. Donors of all sexual orientations should instead be asked about any recent risky sexual activity, particularly in the three weeks prior to donating blood, as it is possible for very early HIV infections to be missed during blood screening.

The statement can be read in its entirety on aabb.org.