Indian Minister Clarifies Anti-Gay Remarks
By Tripti Lahiri Indias health minister, Ghulam Nabi Azad, who told an AIDS gathering this week that sexual relations between men were unnatural and a disease, on Tuesday clarified his remarks in a singularly unclear fashion. http://s.wsj.net/public/resources/images/OB-OP017_iazadb_CV_20110705133206.j pg Associated Press Photo Indias health minister, Ghulam Nabi Azad, has been the focus of controversy for his remarks on homosexuality. I have said something but half has been quoted, half has not been quoted, Mr. Azad told reporters. We dont want controversy because we have had already enough in two years. Mr. Azad, who appeared to be referring to his governments bad publicity over corruption allegations, also said that he never even used the word gay in his remarks. I am sorry if I have hurt feelings of any section of the society. During my speech I used technical words. I kept myself very clear, didnt use the word homosexual or gay, said Mr. Azad, according to a report on the website of news channel NDTV <http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/health-minister-offers-clarification-on-h omophobic-remarks-116985> . The subject was HIV, [I] used man having sex with man in Hindi for contracting HIV. That was not what it sounded like on Monday, when Mr. Azad spoke to a gathering in New Delhi of district council leaders from across the country. Unfortunately, this disease, where a man has sex with a man, which is absolutely unnatural and shouldnt happen but it is happening, is spreading around the world and has also come to India, said Mr. Azad, speaking in Hindi. Even in our country the numbers of men having sex with men is significant. Gay people and AIDS prevention activists said they were horrified, with some calling for his resignation. By the time Mr. Azad clarified his remarks, even the United Nations AIDS organization had weighed in. Indias rich tradition of inclusivity and social justice must include men who have sex with men and transgender people, said Michel Sidibé, executive director of UNAIDS, according to a statement <http://www.unaids.org/en/resources/presscentre/pressreleaseandstatementarch ive/2011/july/20110705psmsm/> . There is no place for stigma and discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. Mr. Azads remarks, like former South African president Thabo Mbeki <http://blogs.wsj.com/indiarealtime/2011/07/05/indian-health-minister-pulls- an-mbeki/> s HIV skepticism, caused concern among gay rights and AIDS prevention groups that, in addition to being offensive to gay people, this would set back health efforts by showing that stigma around homosexuality exists even at the highest reaches of the Indian government. Email: <http://groups.yahoo.com/group/gay_bombay/post?postID=DCvNIbdTv_3_C5j5flK54H ZuyqMJgNC-L4S3BWR464eSfMgGEAMLax1OSqSI6REqIgVM3LQEejINlemMrw> modera...@gaybombay.in E Groups: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/gay_bombay http://groups.google.com/group/Gaybombay http://groups.google.com/group/GayIndia Public archives at http://www.mail-archive.com/gay_bombay%40yahoogroups.com/maillist.html Rss feed: http://www.mail-archive.com/gay_bombay@yahoogroups.com/maillist.xml GB Internet Radio at http://www.gaybombay.in/gbradio Web Sites: www.gaybombay.in www.gayindia.org Orkut: http://www.orkut.co.in/Main#Profile?uid=15084918632470824129 Blogs: http://gaybombay.blogspot.com http://gaybombay.wordpress.com Twitter: http://twitter.com/gaybombay http://twitter.com/gayindia Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/gaybombay http://www.facebook.com/gayindia
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