Gay-festival prize of Fiji holiday grates

The national gay film festival, Out Takes, has been criticised for offering a membership incentive prize of a trip to Fiji, where homosexuality is illegal.

Body Positive chairman Bruce Kilmister said he felt the prize - five days for two adults at a resort - was inappropriate given the legal situation in Fiji and its government's attitude to people living with HIV/Aids.

"Fiji denies access to people with HIV/Aids," Mr Kilmister said yesterday. "Why would we encourage people to spend their money in Fiji when they discriminate against people living with HIV/Aids? I just note the irony."

The 1997 Fijian Constitution guards against discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation, but consensual homosexual acts between adults are illegal. Those found guilty can be jailed for up to 14 years and beaten.

The brutal murders of the head of the Fiji Red Cross, John Scott, and his partner, Greg Scrivener, in 2001 gave rise to a campaign of homophobic innuendo from the Fiji police.

In a statement published by the website GayNZ.com, Reel Queer [the group behind the Out Takes Festival], said a boycott would not advance the cause of equality.

- NZPA