Gay Tongzhi Rights Movement Marks the New Year of the Dragon with a Message of Hope

 BY ANNA LEACH

On the first day of the year of the dragon Tongzhi Rights Movement has issued a happy new year message and a statement. It says that over 2011 the gay rights movement in China became more entrepreneurial and that their organisation was committed to working hard 'day and night' for LGBT rights.

The message continues saying that 2012 is a 'new starting point, a new journey, new development, we firmly believe that the majority of people in support of the gay rights movement will full of more enthusiasm, confidence and spirit.'

Tongzhi has historically meant 'comrade' but is now widely accepted as slang for gay. The message was released on their website and on Weibo, the Chinese Twitter.

The majority of China’s LGBT citizens, potentially the biggest gay population in the world, can't openly express their sexualities due to societal and family pressures.  Homosexuality was legalised in China in 1997 and removed from the Ministry of Health's list of mental illnesses in 2001. Shanghai PRIDE, a celebration of LGBT life, has been held since 2009 but anti-protest laws in China mean that it can't feature a public parade.

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