Out of the Closet.(gay activist Noel Chen)(Brief Article)

The protest certainly made for good TV. Last month gay activist Noel Chen was led--tied up, hooded and pulled by a leash--to the gates of the central police station in Hong Kong. His comrades bound him spread-eagled to the iron fence in order to protest a recent police raid on a shop selling S&M paraphernalia. When cops came to untie him, Chen mugged for the cameras that had gathered, writhing and moaning as if in ecstasy.

The stunt was broadcast not just in tiny Hong Kong but across southern China, where news from the former British colony is carried on local Chinese stations. And there Chen's antics had far more than entertainment value. Homosexuality, for decades considered a disease by authorities, is one of the most enduring taboos in China. But in the industrial south especially, where some of the country's greatest social and economic changes are occurring, a vocal gay community is beginning to assert itself. Individuals are learning to explore and take pride in their sexual identities. Groups are coming together to form loose- knit organizations and draw support from each other. And increasingly, they are doing so under the influence of the vibrant gay and lesbian culture in nearby Hong Kong. "Only a small part of Noel's protest was shown here on television," says Lee Laoshi, a gay man from Guangzhou, "but it gave us courage."

The fact that the former British colony is serving as a beacon of hope is somewhat ironic. For most of its history, Hong Kong maintained some of the strictest "anti-buggery" laws in the world. But as part of their preparations for returning the colony to China, the British watered down those laws and promoted new ones to ensure freedom of expression and organization. That encouraged Hong Kong gay activists to speak out and publish; at the same time, relaxed visa restrictions have allowed mainland activists to liaise with their brethren in Hong Kong. Books by Hong Kong author Chou Wah-shan about sexual identity and coming out have been so influential on the mainland that they are now known as "the bible."

Until now the greatest challenge facing most gays on the mainland has been ignorance. Ah Hui, a 19-year-old with floppy hair from a small village in Guangdong province, first became aware of his attraction to men when he was 13. But that knowledge gave him mental problems at school. "Whenever anyone laughed, I was sure he knew I liked men and he was laughing at me," he says. "I grew furious." His mother took him to a village doctor, who prescribed medicine for epilepsy. Finally, after he experienced strong side effects, his family sent him to Hong Kong for further medical treatment. There Ah Hui sought out Rainbow of Hong Kong, the city's most active gay and lesbian organization, and attended peer-support groups. "I learned that it was OK to love men," he said. "And I met my first boyfriend."

Hong Kong groups supply experience and support to the wider community as well. Rainbow brings mainland gay activists to conferences in Hong Kong, and sponsors a telephone hot line. Callers from all over southern China ask for ...