CHINESE LGBT NGOS FACE CHALLENGES

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BEIJING 000109

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/15/2035
TAGS: CH PGOV PHUM SOCI
SUBJECT: CHINESE LGBT NGOS FACE CHALLENGES

REF: REF A) 09 BEIJING 2733

Classified By: Political Minister Counselor Aubrey Carlson
for Reasons 1.4 (b)(d)


1. (C) Summary: PRC lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender (LGBT)
NGO leaders told PolOffs December 22 that their organizations
are not viewed by the government as particularly sensitive
but face the same registration and funding challenges as
other civil society groups. PRC Internet censors equate
homosexuality with pornography, making online networking and
information access difficult. Gay activists stressed the
need for broad-based NGO funding that addresses a wide range
of LGBT concerns, not only HIV/AIDS. End summary.

TOLERANCE AND INDIFFERENCE
--------------


2. (C) During a December 22 dinner meeting, a group of nine
prominent lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender (LGBT) rights
activists told PolOffs that in spite of relative gains made
in social acceptance, the LGBT community in China still
suffered from widespread ignorance and a general lack of
sympathy from society at large. Although now decriminalized,
homosexuality had been classified as a "psychiatric disorder"
until 2001, and most Chinese continued to regard homosexual
activity as aberrant behavior, said Gang Xiao (protect),
director and co-host of the informational program Queer
Comrades. Authorities still sometimes harassed gays, but an
August 2009 confrontation in Guangzhou, which was covered in
the national media, between a group of gay men and police not
only became a symbolic moment in China's nascent gay rights
movement but also demonstrated that many members of the gay
community were no longer afraid of the government.

GAY RIGHTS WORK PERMITTED
--------------


3. (C) "Eva" Li Yanxia (protect) and Bin Xu (protect),both
from the lesbian advocacy group Common Language, stated that
their organization faced obstacles common to all independent
civil society groups in China, specifically the inability to
legally register as a non-profit organization and fundraising
challenges. Like most NGOs, Common Language was registered
as a corporation, which meant that inbound remittances from
Australian and North American LGBT organizations, the NGO's
primary donors, were supposed to be taxed as revenue. Eva
reported that Common Language had been "audited" by
government officials shortly before the sixtieth anniversary
of the founding of the PRC in October. Although Common
Language had not been not shut down, officials had arrived
unannounced, taken samples of the organization's magazine,
and thoroughly searched the office records (ref A).


4. (C) That said, both Eva and "Luke" Zhao Ke (protect),
editor of Gayspot magazine, made it clear that LGBT subject
matter and advocacy work were not considered sensitive.
Gayspot, which caters to the gay community nationwide, was a
licensed publication, and Les(plus),Common Language's
54-page monthly magazine, had not been shut down even though
it was "not quite legal." However, Luke said he had been
unable to publish a story on gay life in Xinjiang that was to
include details on the Uighur population. He attributed this
run-in with censorship to the geographical region covered.
Gang Xiao added that he had planned to do a film about gay
life in Urumqi, the capital of the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous
Region (XUAR),but had abandoned the project on his own
accord after deciding that anything even tangentially related
to Xinjiang had become highly sensitive in the wake of the
July 2009 ethnic riots.


5. (C) There appears to be less tolerance for gay and lesbian
groups on university campuses, however. "Leo" Chen Guang
(protect),the event organizer and a member of the Chinese
Communist Party (CCP),said that any student group or campus
discussion on LGBT issues was strictly off limits at Peking
University, where he worked as a counselor. Chinese
officials did not want Peking University's reputation
"tarnished," Leo said, given the institution's high profile
in both China and abroad. However, loosely-organized,
unofficial LGBT student groups operated under the radar on
university campuses throughout China even though formal,
recognized groups were rare, commented both Leo and Bin Xu.

INTERNET CENSORSHIP DRAGNET
--------------


6. (C) LGBT interests had been impacted by the recent marked
decrease in Internet freedom, stated Bin Xu. Although many
LGBT websites were still accessible in China, the group
noted, terminology associated with homosexuality was often
censored. In fact, the word itself ("tongxinglian") was

BEIJING 00000109 002 OF 002


automatically erased by some filtering software used by the
government. Since censors classified most references to
homosexuality as pornography, the group complained, it made
social networking and public education campaigns via the
Internet difficult. Further complicating matters, common
networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube were
no longer easily accessible in China. Still, Leo remarked,
the GLBT community "knows where to go" on the Internet to
steer clear of the censors. Bin Xu added that "you have to
be creative" when using the Internet for LGBT advocacy and
social networking.


7. (C) Similarly, although Beijing had held a gay and lesbian
film festival recently, many films of interest to the LGBT
community were not available through mainstream outlets in
China, added Bin Xu. However, pirated copies of LGBT-themed
films were widely available through street vendors, and
interested viewers with the necessary technical skills could
find them on the Internet.

BEYOND HIV/AIDS
--------------


8. (C) Like other Chinese civil society groups, LGBT NGOs
were reliant on overseas support to remain in operation, our
interlocutors said. The group's chief complaint was that it
was nearly impossible to obtain funding for anything other
than HIV/AIDS-related projects, which were the sole focus of
many international NGOs. Although HIV/AIDS work was
obviously crucial, the group stated, it was also imperative
to increase awareness of, and protections for, the civil
rights of the LGBT community in China, which was the primary
purpose of their grassroots activism. Forging relationships
with LGBT organizations in the United States and other
Western countries was an immediate goal of those present.
Eva of Common Language, who spoke highly of her experience as
an intern at the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center,
underscored the value of expanding training and exchange
activities across international boundaries.

HUNTSMAN