BANGKOK: Thursday will mark a turning point for rights in Myanmar as the country is to hold its first-ever public LGBT Pride. The celebrations are scheduled as part of the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia. The upcoming Pride has attracted UN officials, artists, writers and LGBT people from the entertainment industry, who will discuss LGBT rights around the world. The guest speakers will also share their own experiences facing the violence that stems from homophobia and transphobia. Aung Myo Min, one of the Myanmar Pride organizers, told Gay Star News that LGBT people in Myanmar regularly encounter “silent homophobia” even as anti-gay policies have been relaxed in recent years. “We're not going out on the street for a parade,” Min said. “It will be an indoor event because of the situation in Burma. But we hope that we will have a gay parade in the future.” Min's group, the Human Rights Education Institute Burma (HREIB), has organized three previous IDAHOT events on May 17 for Myanmar nationals living in Thailand. This year, HREIB is hosting dual celebrations in Rangoon and Mandalay, the two largest cities in Myanmar. “This year there have been some changes in Burma,” Min said. For the celebration in Mandalay, HREIB received permission from local authorities. Asked if he is concerned about conservative backlash, Min insists that the Pride events will not be political. “This is just a celebration of a historic event, when homosexuality was removed from the list of mental diseases,” he told Gay Star News. “It's just about the dignity of the LGBT people.” “Our message is just to end homophobia,” he added. A poster designed by HREIB to commemorate IDAHOT 2012 reads, “Homosexuality is not a sickness, but homophobia is.”
