“NewsWrap" for the week ending February 2, 2008 (As broadcast on "This Way Out" program #1,036, distributed 2-4-08) [Written by Greg Gordon, with thanks to Rex Wockner with Bill Kelley] Reported this week by Christopher Gaal and DonnaAnn Ward Spaniards go to the polls on March 9th, but the Socialist government's two-year-old same-gender marriage law has not been a major issue in the campaign. The conservative opposition Partido Popular had strongly condemned it, and said they'd use the law to oust the progressive government of Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, who took office in April 2004. But recent surveys show that same-gender marriage enjoys overwhelming support in Spain. According to a public opinion poll released in January by Instituto Opina, nearly 75 percent of those questioned said that they're comfortable with same-gender marriage, and only 18 percent favored repealing the law. The Roman Catholic Church, which also opposed it and has urged that the law be rescinded, endorsed a Madrid rally on December 30th where about 20 Catholic bishops joined hundreds of thousands marching in opposition to marriage equality. Pope Benedict XVI, in a video link from Rome, repeated previous statements that only a relationship between one man and one woman should be legally recognized. And the Spanish Bishop's Conference issued a statement this week implicitly supporting the Partido Popular by warning that "not all (political positions) are equally compatible with the faith and Christian demands in life." But Zapartero's government has insisted that it would not accept “moral guardianship” from anyone. Deputy Prime Minister Maria Teresa Fernandez de la Vega said that the Church could no longer impose its version of morality on the country, as it had a generation ago under the fascist rule of Generalissimo Francisco Franco. When Zapatero called national elections in mid-January, he said that the same-gender marriage law was one of his greatest achievements. But his government is facing stiff competition from the Partido Popular, mostly over rising inflation and other economic issues. Recent polls show the two parties running neck-and-neck. It's been a year-and-a-half since civil unions became legal in the Czech Republic - making it the first post-Soviet nation to recognize same-gender couples - but less than 500 of them have thus far taken advantage of the law. It grants registered same- and unmarried opposite-gender couples inheritance and health care rights similar to those given to heterosexually married couples. The law, however, specifically bans same-gender marriage and the adoption of children by gay and lesbian couples. But a study of partnership registries by the Sidovsky Management Agency found only 487 same-gender couples had registered by the end of 2007, according to a report this week by the CTK news agency. It said that 353 of those couples were gay men, while 134 were lesbians. 43 involved a foreign national, mostly from Slovakia, along with Azerbaijan, Taiwan, Israel, Mexico, Kazakhstan, Armenia, the Netherlands, the U.S., and Canada. Eight of the partnerships have been dissolved. Homosexuality was outlawed in the former Czechoslovakia until 1961. Sex between men in Jamaica remains illegal, punishable by up to ten years in jail, and reports of physical attacks against LGBT people are sadly routine in the Caribbean nation. According to Human Rights Watch, the latest involved a group of four men living together in the central Jamaican town of Mandeville. A mob gathered outside the house this week and demanded that the men leave the area because they're gay. The four men inside called the police when they saw the crowd gathering. About a half hour later, 15-to-20 men broke down the door and began beating and slashing the inhabitants. The victims said that police didn't arrive until 90 minutes after they'd first called for help. One man ran from the house with the mob in pursuit, and is still missing. A Jamaican newspaper reported that blood was found at the mouth of a nearby pit, suggesting that he had fallen inside or may have been killed nearby. Two of the other men were hospitalized. The left ear of one of them had been severed, and his arm was broken in two places. International human rights groups have called Jamaica one of the most homophobic places in the world, and have urged the government to repeal its anti-queer laws, but that hasn't happened. The Jamaica Forum for Lesbians All-Sexuals and Gays, or J-FLAG, said in a statement this week that "When those with whom we entrust the responsibility of leadership fail to act decisively, they betray all Jamaicans.” In Australia, several hundred demonstrators attended a rally in Sydney this week to protest escalating violence against LGBT people along Oxford Street and what is considered to be other queer-friendly parts of Darlinghurst. Speakers condemned the violence and called on government authorities to do more to prevent it. Meanwhile, the notoriously anti-queer Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kansas, which is infamous for its “godhatesfags” Web site, has created another, “godhatesaustralia.com.” Led by publicity-hound Fred Phelps, the group picketed the funeral of gay-bashed Wyoming student Matthew Shepard, and has been demonstrating at the funerals of U.S. soldiers killed in Iraq because of America's supposed support for queer equality. They've now added Australians to the list of those who'll burn in hell because of the late Aussie actor Heath Ledger's portrayal of a gay cowboy in “Brokeback Mountain.” The group called for “true believers” to picket his funeral. They say that Ledger, who was not gay, was “worse” than a “real homosexual” because such people “enable them.” A Phelps spokesperson told reporters that Australia has “outlawed genuine gospel preaching for so long now that the nation is irreversibly doomed.” A member of Israel's religious Shas Party told a parliamentary committee this week that homosexuality is an epidemic and should be dealt with like the Health Ministry deals with bird flu. Nissim Ze'ev was speaking in support of a bill that targets Pride events in Jerusalem and would give the city the power to ban public gatherings that "insult religious values and public feelings." He said that gays and lesbians should be treated the same way as drug addicts and alcoholics and forced into "rehabilitation." The Association of Gay Men, Lesbians, Bisexuals and Transgenders - AGUDAH - said that if the bill passes it would turn Jerusalem into "the international capital of darkness." At least 14 cross-dressers in Kuwait have been arrested under a new law that criminalizes "imitating the appearance of the opposite sex." According to a statement issued by Human Rights Watch, they're being held in a special ward of Tahla Prison, where guards have shaved off the detainees' hair and subjected them to other psychological and physical abuse. "Transgender people in Kuwait tell Human Rights Watch that they are now afraid to leave their homes,” the statement said, “even for work or to meet basic needs -- for fear of arrest and ill-treatment." Article 199 of the Middle East nation's Criminal Code, approved by the National Assembly on December 10th, states that "[A]ny person committing an indecent act in a public place, or imitating the appearance of a member of the opposite sex, shall be subject to imprisonment for a period not exceeding one year or a fine not exceeding one thousand dinars," which is about 3,700 U.S. dollars. Joe Stork, Deputy Director of Human Rights Watch's Middle East division, told reporters that "The wave of arrests in the past month shows exactly why Kuwait should repeal this repressive law." And finally, there was both bad news and good news for LGBT activists in the U.S. late this week. The Florida Division of Elections announced on February 1st that a petition drive promoting a constitutional amendment to ban same-gender marriage has qualified for the November state ballot. There was some question about whether the sponsoring group, Florida4Marriage, would be able to gather enough support to qualify the measure, but a last-minute push, primarily among churchgoers, managed to secure the number of required signatures. Even though Florida already restricts marriage to heterosexual couples, proponents of the constitutional ban said that law could be overturned in court. The amendment says, "Inasmuch as marriage is the legal union of only one man and one woman, no other legal union that is treated as marriage or the substantial equivalent thereof shall be valid or recognized." LGBT advocates say that its wording is so broad that it could also nullify domestic partnership benefits already in place in some areas for same-gender couples and opposite-gender senior citizen couples whose social security and other benefits could be lost if they remarry. Because it will amend the Florida state constitution, passage will require a 60 percent vote. But a state law allowing same-gender couples to register as domestic partners in Oregon took effect on February 1st after a federal judge ruled that the state's process of evaluating petition signatures attempting to repeal the measure was consistent enough to be valid. The law passed last year and was to take effect on January 1st, but U.S. District Judge Michael Mosman suspended it in late December to hear testimony challenging the nullification of what would have been enough signatures to qualify the repeal effort. The petitions fell 96 signatures short of the 55,179 needed to place it on the November ballot. The petitioners claimed that county clerks rejected signatures improperly, but Mosman decided that a common standard for evaluating signatures existed in all 36 Oregon counties. The Alliance Defense Fund, an Arizona-based group that advocates for so-called Christian legal issues, said it would appeal Mosman's ruling. But the state has already put the domestic partnership applications online, and queer rights activists predicted that hundreds of happy couples would quickly register their relationships. They'll be able to file joint state tax returns, inherit each other's property and make medical choices on each other's behalf, along with several other state benefits given to heterosexually married couples. While Massachusetts remains the only state with full marriage equality, Oregon becomes the ninth to approve spousal rights in some form for same-gender couples, joining California, Connecticut, Hawai'i, Maine, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Vermont, and Washington. ************** Wondering what's for Dinner Tonight? Get new twists on family favorites at AOL Food. (http://food.aol.com/dinner-tonight?NCID=aolfod00030000000001)