quote:

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(New York City) The Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) Monday voiced concern about the arrests and reported mistreatment of nearly 39 gay men in Nepal.

The men are all members of the Blue Diamond Society. They were swept up in a series of raids on August 9. (story) A senior police spokesperson said the men were indulging in illegal activities.

“We respect homosexuals as citizens," said Devilal Tamang. "However, we arrested them as they were indulging in acts prevented by the law,” he said.

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"We respect homosexuals as citizens, however, we arrested them as they were indulging in acts prevented by the law” ?????

That's the kind of two-faced hypocrisy that would make BRIAN MULRONEY blush!

[ 17 August 2004: Message edited by: Hephaestion ]

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(New York City) 39 members of a gay civil rights organization have been released from a Nepal jail where they had been held since August 9.

New York-based Human Rights Watch said Monday that the men were released on bail Friday following an international outcry.

The men are members of the Blue Diamond Society, Nepal's only LGBT rights group. They were swept up in a series of raids on August 9. A senior police spokesperson said the men were indulging in illegal activities.

The men's only crime appears to be advocating civil rights for gays and educating the gay population in the tiny kingdom between China and India about AIDS.

Human Rights Watch said that no trial date has been set and the specific charges appear vague. It said that it will cpmtinue to monitor the situation.

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China and India have societies and governments th that are both notoriously homophobic.

It begins with a letter from a member of the Blue Diamond Society, and then finishes with quotes from a longer letter received by Gunnar, a German friend who lives in Frankfurt and who posts at the 365 Forum.

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Dear All
We are glad to inform that all 39 members of Blue Diamond Society who were arrested on 9th August are released on bail charged 1000 Nrs each.Blue Diamond Society has paid the bail 39000Nrs (530US$). Metis has to be presented to the magistrate on 20th September 2004. All the Metis may have to follow the dates for few times before the public offence charged case resolved.
We have no words to thank all the international and local organizations,individuals, friends, governments, media and relatives for your solidarity and support on this difficult time. This is just a quick note to inform you this good news so that all the friends through out the world who have been worried with this case have some releaved.Thank you very much.

In solidarity,

Sunil B Pant
Blue Diamond Society

Brief report of experience of Metis of their last 13 days:

According to the arrested metis, all of them were taken saying that they were being taken for a meeting and needed them to identify the guy who'd been caught under the suspicion of Jayaram's case. Some of them were dancing inside Babylon disco and most of them were on their way to the disco. The police that were their clients took them and most of them were ones that they knew from before. They went with them because they approached them in a friendly manner and told them that they were all being taken for two hours meeting.

After they were taken they were all kept in a room that wasn't even big enough for five people and said they would be freed after questioning them. Most of the metis that were arrested were just out to enjoy themselves in the discos and wanted a night of dancing.

Inside the prison on the first day when one of the metis wanted to use the bathroom they didn't open the door and when he yelled at them to take him to the bathroom they beat him up with a stick till it broke.

Due to this he suffered from fever and was all shaky and even after seeing his state the police didn't take him to see the doctor or get any medications for him. Three police came and when he asked them for the medicine they said we'll get it and later just laughed. So Blue Diamond Society had to take the medication for him after being informed.

The police also beat up another meti, Amber Majhi who was attacked by three police after he protested after seeing a journalist videotaping them inside the cell. This was yet another discrimination from the police, they violated the rights of all the metis by letting the media expose them when there are a lot of metis that haven't opened themselves at their homes and could face difficulties later.

There was a lot of verbal harassments from the police, they called them names and said they will shoot them when they protested against being locked up for being innocent. They also said that "Acid should be put on the face of the hijaras and that they don't deserve to live". The police called them names and even got other people to see them. They were laughed at and everyone feels like they were punished for a crime that they hadn't done.

They were kept for a long period of time and some were tortured psychologically by saying they were going to be kept for more than six months. Everyone feels like it was very inhuman from the police to trick him or her into going with him or her and locking him or her up for no reason at all. They didn't even give them any explanation as to why they were being kept inside. They were just verbally abused.

While giving statement a lot of them were made to sign on something that they couldn't read since there are a lot of illiterate metis in the arrested 39. Others who could read were made to sign and not given a chance to read what they were signing. They were all pressured and threatened and made to sign on statements where anything could be written.

That's all i got - the whole letter. I think you should know about.

Greets