Elton John joins call for boycott of Brunei-owned hotels over anti-gay laws


READ MORE

British pop legend Elton John has joined actor George Clooney in calling for a boycott of nine Brunei-owned hotels over the sultanate’s new death-penalty laws for gay sex and adultery.


The call came as a growing list of politicians and celebrities added their names to those condemning the new laws and supporting a boycott.


“I commend my friend, #GeorgeClooney, for taking a stand against the anti-gay discrimination and bigotry taking place in the nation of #Brunei – a place where gay people are brutalized, or worse – by boycotting the Sultan’s hotels,” the singer wrote on Twitter.


The 72-year-old, a veteran gay rights campaigner, said his “heart went out” to staff at the hotels, but that “we must send a message, however we can, that such treatment is unacceptable”.


The nine hotels mentioned by Clooney are located in Britain, France, Italy and the United States. They include London’s exclusive Dorchester and the Beverly Hills Hotel in Los Angeles. 



The Dorchester Collection luxury chain issued a statement saying that its code emphasises “equality, respect and integrity in all areas” and that “we do not tolerate any form of discrimination”, CNN reported.


Clooney called for the boycott earlier this week, saying “every single time we stay at or take meetings at or dine at any of these nine hotels, we are putting money directly into the pockets of men who choose to stone and whip to death their own citizens for being gay or accused of adultery”.


‘Barbaric’ decision


“No one should face the death penalty because of who they love. Brunei’s decision is barbaric,” Britain’s international development minister Penny Mordaunt wrote on Twitter.


Former New Zealand prime minister Helen Clark called the new penal code “shocking” and “barbaric”.


George Clooney and Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah.

Amnesty International called on Brunei to “immediately halt its plans to implement these vicious punishments”.


In the US, Clooney’s call drew supportive declarations from lawmakers on both sides of the political aisle and a strong statement from the Trump administration.


“We strongly oppose human rights violations and abuses against LGBTI persons, including violence,” the State Department said in a statement.


US condemnation 


Former US vice president Joe Biden, who is expected to seek the Democratic Party’s 2020 presidential nomination, tweeted on Friday: “Stoning people to death for homosexuality or adultery is appalling and immoral…


“There is no excuse – not culture, not tradition – for this kind of hate and inhumanity.”


Another Democrat seeking the party’s nomination, Senator Kamala Harris of California, joined the chorus. “These human rights abuses cannot be tolerated,” she said.


And Senator Ted Cruz, a Republican from Texas, said on Twitter: “This is wrong. It is barbaric. America should condemn this immoral and inhumane law, and everyone should be united against it.”


Actress Jamie Lee Curtis also tweeted in support of her fellow actor’s stand. “I stand with George Clooney, a good man doing the right thing, fighting an unjust and barbaric law.”


A sharia executioner, known as algojo, during a public caning punishment in Jantho, Aceh Besar Regency, Indonesia, in 2017.

Clooney and his wife, human-rights lawyer Amal Clooney, have been active in humanitarian causes. 


Brunei, an absolute monarchy ruled for 51 years by Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, is to implement the new penal code starting Wednesday.


Homosexuality is already illegal in the sultanate, but it will now become a capital offence. The law applies only to Muslims.


Brunei first announced the measures in 2013, but implementation has been delayed, in the face of opposition by rights groups, and as officials worked out the practical details.


Article source: https://www.smh.com.au/world/north-america/trump-has-finished-written-answers-to-questions-from-mueller-20181117-p50gme.html?ref=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_source=rss_world

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

World Cup Central: Dhoni, Akhtar, Botham in All Blacks all-time cricket XV

READ MORE Facebook Twitter Facebook Messenger Pinterest Email print World Cup fever has crossed platforms. There was Harry Kane sneaking into India’s training sessions to meet Virat Kohli. And now there’s the All Blacks picking a XV made up of past and present cricketers. With the @cricketworldcup underway in England, we’ve taken a look at all the best players from past and present to select the ultimate Cricket XV! SQUAD NOTES https://t.co/B3rnj5OBuJ #CWC19 pic.twitter.com/KuUtPU77PT — All Blacks (@AllBlacks) June 2, 2019 And they’ve got some pretty cool reasons for picking some pretty cool players. Curtly Ambrose : If anyone wants to argue with this selection then take it up with Sir Curtly himself. We dare you. MS Dhoni : The Richie McCaw of Cricket. Enough said. Dwayne Leverock : Famous for his one-handed catch at the 2003 World Cup, the 130kg Bermudian would surely make just as big a splash on the rugby field. Jofra Archer runs in to bowl  Get...
Read more

Banned Bancroft's journey of self-discovery

Image
READ MORE © Getty Images Spanish lessons, yoga and a host of community work have all been part of the path taken by Cameron Bancroft since the Newlands ball-tampering scandal. The Australia batsman has been looking to seek the sort of perspective and self-knowledge that will prevent him from following the kind of instructions issued to him by David Warner in the Cape Town dressing room. Bancroft spoke in Perth on Saturday ahead of his return to cricket via Twenty20 and 50-over appearances in the Northern Territory, where he will also endeavour to work closely in developing local talent. It’s the next step on the path away from Newlands as Bancroft serves a nine-month ban from the game imposed by Cricket Australia under its code of conduct. Perspective on life was greatly needed as Bancroft, Warner and the former captain Steven Smith pondered what evolved in South Africa, and Bancroft said he had spent plenty of time devoting himself broadening his own knowledge and also to...
Read more

Drones to become the new naval mine hunters under Morrison pledge

Image
READ MORE Advanced navies worldwide are increasingly turning to drones to do mine hunting and clearing work at sea. Marcus Hellyer, a former Defence Department official and now a senior analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, said that using autonomous and unmanned sea vehicles allowed the crewed ship to stay at the edge of a minefield, keeping naval personnel safer. The Morrison government has promised if re-elected to fast-track the building of two new mine hunting naval ships. Credit: Nine Newspapers “Common sense has prevailed,” he said of the decision. “Rather than keeping going down the path where you have old technology being extended at great cost, this will introduce new technology more quickly and that’s a good thing. “The current path does keep the human at the centre of the minefield, but the new approach lets them stay outside the minefield and let autonomous vehicles go in and do the dangerous work.” Article source: https:/...
Read more