Others at the rally waved rainbow flags, danced and brandished placards with slogans such as “We’re not nuclear, we are queer”, and “Power to the queers”. “We are human beings, so we just want to be treated equal in the face of the law. “I want to have my voice heard, I want to know that we matter and I want to have equality in Singapore,“ Susan Helen, a 39-year-old business manager taking part, told AFP.
Singapore’s “Pink Dot” gay rights rally started in 2009 and has regularly attracted sizeable crowds despite a backlash from some quarters.Īfter holding online-only events during the pandemic, large numbers turned out Saturday as the rally returned to a downtown park - the only place in the city-state where protests are allowed without a police permit. While the city-state is prosperous and developed, social attitudes remain conservative and sex between men is still illegal, although the statute is not actively enforced. SINGAPORE: Thousands of Singaporeans dressed in pink gathered at a park Saturday calling for greater recognition of LGBTQ rights, the first such rally since 2019 after coronavirus restrictions were eased.
