Maurice Mjomba, an LGBT rights activist in Tanzania, was found dead in his home in Dar es Salaam in the early morning on July 30 after a neighbor reported a "foul smell" coming from his house, reported Identity Kenya.
The unidentified neighbor immediately contacted Julius Lumanyika Kyaruzi, the coordinator of the Center for Human Rights Promotion, where Mjomba, 29, was an outreach training coordinator for injection drug users, according to the news source. Kyaruzi's Facebook page states that he worked at CHRP.
Mjomba was a founding member of Stay Awake Network Activities, Tanzania's premier men who have sex with men group since 2008. He was also the group's assistant secretary and executive committee member. SANA representatives suspected that Mjomba was strangled, but that the "circumstances were unconfirmed," according to a post on the group's website announcing his death http://tinyurl.com/cfkcve9.
The police were already at the scene when Kyaruzi and his colleagues arrived at Mjomba's house, where he lived alone, people close to Mjomba told Identity Kenya.
It is suspected that Mjomba could have been dead for days as no one had heard from him since July 28. An autopsy of Mjomba's body is being conducted at the Muhimbili Mortuary.
The last post on Mjomba's Facebook page was on July 18 where he reposted a comment originally posted on June 12, "Its (sic) always hard to choose the right thing when the wrong thing is too fun..." The post was followed the same day at 8:13 a.m. with "Umeonae," which translated from Swahili it means "have you noticed?"
Police are conducting an investigation into Mjomba's death.
For more information, visit https://www.facebook.com/maurice.mjomba?ref=ts or http://stayawakenetworkactivities.blogspot.com/.
Vietnam considering same-sex marriage
Vietnam may become the first Asian country to allow same-sex marriage under a proposal by the Ministry of Justice to overhaul the communist country's marriage laws.
The ministry has been investigating the issue of same-sex marriage since it sent out letters of inquiry to government, family, and legal agencies and Hanoi Law University on June 20, reported Gay Star News. More discussions are planned leading up to the National Assembly Congress next spring.
In a surprise announcement during a July 24 debate broadcast on national TV, Justice Minister Ha Hung Cuong said it was "unacceptable to create social prejudice against the homosexual community."
He didn't outright recommend same-sex marriage, but he did say that the "problem must be considered carefully" examining multiple aspects of Vietnamese culture.
Some couples are going ahead with marriage plans regardless of the current law. Lesbian couple Dinh Thi Hong Loan, 31, and Nguyen Thi Chi, 20, have wedding plans, the couple told the Associated Press.
"Our love for each other is real and nothing changes regardless of whether the law is passed or not," said Loan as she talked about the couple's upcoming wedding while holding her girlfriend's hand. "But when it is passed, we will definitely go get registered. I can't wait!"
Cuong's statements surprised longtime LGBT rights activists who called the Vietnam government's consideration a "victory" whether or not the issue makes it to the National Assembly, according to media reports.
"I think everyone is surprised," Vien Tanjung, an Indonesian gay-rights activist, told the Associated Press. "Even if it's not successful it's already making history. For me, personally, I think it's going to go through."
Homosexuality isn't illegal in Vietnam, but it's not necessarily allowed socially either. Same-sex marriage is currently prohibited in Vietnam's Marriage and Family Law in 2000, reported AP.
The country will hold Viet Pride this weekend at the Goethe Institute in Nguyen Thai Hoc, Hanoi. The event will feature films, presentations of LGBT research, and live music performances celebrating cultural diversity, according to the organization's website.
For more information, visit http://vietpride2012.weebly.com/index.html.
Got international LGBT news tips? Call or send them to Heather Cassell at 00+1-415-221-3541, Skype: heather.cassell, or [email protected].