Hong Kong Tycoon Rescinds £80 Million Dowry for Lesbian Daughter

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Hong Kong businessman withdraws £80 million 'marriage bounty' for gay daughter after her heartfelt open letter – but refuses to accept partner

A Hong Kong tycoon has withdrawn his £80 million "marriage bounty" to find his lesbian daughter a male suitor after she defended her sexuality in a heartfelt open letter, but emphatically refused to accept her partner into the family.

Gigi Chao asked her father, flamboyant property developer Cecil Chao, in an open letter on Wednesday to treat her partner of nine years as a "normal, dignified human being".

Her plea came after Chao, who refuses to recognise her as a lesbian, last week doubled the "marriage bounty" on his daughter to HK$1 billion (£80 million).

The initial offer of HK$500 million two years ago attracted 20,000 candidates after the outlandish declaration made international headlines.

"If this is what she wants to be for the time being, it's all over," the elder Chao, wearing a bright orange textured coat and dark-tinted sunglasses, told CNN in an interview on Thursday. » | AFP | Friday, January 31, 2014

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Hong Kong Tycoon's Daughter Defends Lesbian Relationship

BBC: Gigi Chao, the daughter of a Hong Kong tycoon has urged her father to accept she is a lesbian, after he offered millions to find her a husband.

In a open letter Ms Chao says Cecil Chao should accept her partner and "treat her like a normal, dignified human being".

Ms Chao, 33, who married her long-term partner Sean Eav in France in 2012, also emphasised: "There are plenty of good men, they are just not for me."

Mr Chao last week reportedly offered to double his 2012 offer of $65m (£40m).

She told the BBC she wrote the letter to set the record straight. (+ BBC audio) » | Thursday, January 30, 2014

Fury as Lesbian Is Chosen by Anglican Church to Be a Bishop
MAIL ONLINE: The worldwide Anglican Church has been plunged into a fresh crisis after a lesbian was chosen as its second gay bishop.

In a move that will dismay the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, Canon Mary Glasspool was elected as an assistant bishop for the diocese of Los Angeles. >>> Jonathan Petre | Sunday, December 06, 2009

TIMES ONLINE: Election of lesbian bishop 'is very serious', says Dr Rowan Williams >>> Ruth Gledhill, Religion Correspondent | Sunday, December 06, 2009

Homophobia in Mexico
Watch Journeyman Pictures video here

Lesbian Couple Jailed for Kissing on Public Beach in Dubai
MAIL Online: The Dubai Court of Appeal has found a lesbian couple guilty of kissing on a public beach.

The Appeal Court upheld the one-month jail sentence for the women, a 30-year-old Lebanese national and a 36-year-old Bulgarian who both pleaded not guilty.

The Dubai Public Prosecution charged the women with kissing, groping each other and indecent acts in public - the first case of its kind in the country. Lesbian Couple Jailed for Kissing on Public Beach in Dubai >>> | September 2, 2008

BBC:
UK 'Sex on Beach' Trial Delayed: The trial of a British man and woman accused of having sex on a beach in Dubai has been delayed for a week >>> | September 2, 2008

The Dawning of a New Dark Age – Dust Jacket Hardcover, direct from the publishers (UK) >>>
The Dawning of a New Dark Age – Paperback, direct from the publishers (UK) >>>

Now Iranian Lesbian Who Fled to Britain Faces Deportation
THE INDEPENDENT: An Iranian lesbian who fled to Britain after her girlfriend was arrested and sentenced to death faces being forcibly returned after losing the latest round in her battle to be granted asylum.

The case of Pegah Emambakhsh, 40, comes a day after The Independent reported on the growing public outcry over the plight of a gay Iranian teenager who fears he will be executed if he is deported to Iran.

Both cases have provoked international protests against Britain and led to calls for an immediate moratorium on the deportation of gay and lesbian asylum-seekers who fear they will be persecuted in Iran.

More than 60 MEPs have signed a petition asking Gordon Brown to reverse the decision on Mehdi Kazemi, 19, who escaped to the Netherlands after the Home Office refused him asylum last year. His case is still before Dutch judges who will decide this month whether he should return to Britain where he faces deportation to a country which has already executed his boyfriend.

Gay rights group claim there are dozens more cases of gay and lesbian asylum-seekers living in Britain in fear of persecution and facing harsh punishments if forced to return to Iran.

Ms Emambakhsh came to the UK in 2005 fearing for her life after her partner had been arrested by Tehran police. Iranian gay rights groups have reported that that partner is in custody under sentence of death by stoning. Speaking through her asylum representative in Sheffield yesterday, Ms Emambakhsh said: "I will never, never go back. If I do I know I will die."

Under the Iranian Islamic Punishment Act, lesbians found guilty of sexual relations can be sentenced to 100 lashes. But, for a third offence, the punishment is execution. Now Iranian lesbian who fled to Britain faces deportation >>> By Robert Verkaik, Law Editor

THE INDEPENDENT:
Simon Hughes: No gay person should be sent back to Iran

THE INDEPENDENT:
Leading article: Squalid priorities

Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)

’Who Is Sleeping With Whom?’ – The Real Story in Washington!
THE SUNDAY TIMES: IT SHOULD have been Condoleezza Rice’s finest hour as US secretary of state: at last President George W Bush was hosting a Middle East peace conference that she had been struggling to organise for months.

Yet when Rice’s photograph appeared on the front page of America’s bestselling weekly newspaper last week, it had nothing to do with her peacemaking efforts. She had been dragged into a National Enquirer article headlined “Who’s Gay and Who’s Not”.

The article revived long-standing Washington gossip about Rice’s sexuality and sparked off the usual flurry of internet chatter about her high-profile role in a Republican administration widely regarded as hostile to gays.

It also underlined the increasing friction in American politics between a high-minded media establishment disdainful of bedroom gossip and the no-holds-barred, consumer-driven world of instant internet scandal. A Google search of the words “Condoleezza” and “lesbian” last week yielded 146,000 hits. Gay rumours eclipse Condi’s glory moment >>> By Tony Allen-Mills

Mark Alexander