Love Life Fono participants take a break between sessions The path to social and legal equality for glbti people in the Pacific Island nations will be a long and slow one best taken in small and careful steps, participants in a conference heard today. In a session looking at how to navigate a pathway to objectives such as freedom and respect, several speakers noted that Pacific Island glbti people face many obstacles including the need for more liberal education, improved income and resources and, especially, some way of countering religious teachings that motivate bigotry and intolerance in the highly Christian nations. Participants including researchers, educators, and a theological student noted that while they were trying to address equality in, for instance, Samoa and Fiji, the process of de-stigmatisation could not be rushed. However, a tendency for young people, who currently constitute a large percentage of PI populations, to be better educated and informed and to be less doctrinaire in their approach to their Christian faith were seen as promising signs for the future. It was noted that while the role of fa'afafine in Samoa and their counterparts in other PI nations had to some extent survived the destructive influence introduced Christianity had brought to other glbti Islanders, their lives and opportunities such as employment are still severely constrained compared to the heterosexual populations. It was also observed that a major human rights initiative by the United Nations, the Sustainable Development Goals, had had its drafted glbti equality aims deleted by conservative nations, particularly middle eastern countries, making it more difficult for PI glbti-equality activists to leverage the influence of the UN when dealing with their own governments. Almost one hundred people attended the fono today. It opened yesterday and finishes tomorrow night and has attracted glbti people representing a variety of Pacific nations including Samoa, American Samoa, the Cook Islands, Tonga and Niue. The annual Love Life Fono derives a significant amount of its funding and support from the NZ AIDS Foundation.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Friday, 4th December 2015 - 9:37pm