Outrage over WA gay bashing
PERTH — Four days after the largest ever Gay and Lesbian Pride march here [on October 31], two gay men were bashed and tortured in the outer southern suburb of Waikiki.
The men were in their home when a man broke into the house. The intruder beat the men with a baton and used a cigarette lighter to burn them.
One of the men, who did not want to be named, told ABC radio the experience was "absolutely terrifying". He said the intruder made it clear that he was torturing them because he hated gays.
Gay and Lesbian Equality (GALE) spokesperson John Derry said it was not uncommon for gay men to back away from lodging complaints or relating crimes to their sexuality because of fears of recrimination at work, from their families and neighbours. WA and Tasmania remain the only Australian states yet to make discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation illegal.
GALE member Louise Pratt said the implications of the attack were alarming. "People are very confident and happy to be 'out' at Pride, but if you get too much of this sort of thing happening, particularly after an event that gets the homophobes up in arms, then it's a scary prospect and it will force people back into the closet", Pratt said.
[Abridged from West Side Observer, Perth's gay and lesbian newspaper.]