|| News ||
May 22, 2008
Jamaican Prime Minister Criticized for Comment About Gays
Gay activists in
Jamaica condemned the prime minister on Tuesday for
saying he would not allow gays in his cabinet.
Prime Minister
Bruce Golding told BBC television he has the right to make
that decision and to form a cabinet that represents the
Jamaican people.
Jamaica will not
allow outside groups to impose their values, he said
Monday while on an official visit to London.
Such statements
incite more violence against gays, said Jason McFarlane,
a spokesman for Jamaica Forum for Lesbians, All Sexuals, and
Gays.
Earlier this year
a human rights group released a report that blasted the
Caribbean country for its treatment of gays and urged it to
do more to protect them. Several gay activists have
been killed in recent years, and the island still has
a colonial-era law that bans sex between men.
Several Jamaican
singers have also been criticized for violent lyrics
against gays and lesbians. (AP)
© 2008 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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