Parties provide opportunity to pick up new partners, foreigners, say insiders

On the face of it, the event is just a bash - a chance to party into the wee hours of the morning.

And to drink, make merry and meet people.

But events like the annual Nation party, which draws thousands of locals and foreigners, are best known as gay events.

Many revellers see it as opportunity to hook up with strings of sexual partners, say insiders.

Singaporeans who have attended these parties, held on Sentosa annually around National Day since 2001, told The New Paper on Sunday that some party-goers use the occasion to have their private sex fest.

James (not his real name), a 30-year-old events executive, is a regular at such parties.

ONE-NIGHT STANDS

'There will always be black sheep who seek one-night stands, especially at these parties as it is their only chance to meet people from overseas. Just like sarong party girls (local women who hang on to Caucasian men), some of these guys go for ang mohs.'

This casual attitude towards unprotected sex has put these parties on the Government's radar. Last year, it banned the annual SnowBall party, the Christmas version of Nation.

There is deep cause for concern.

Earlier this week, Senior Minister of State (Health) Dr Balaji Sadasivan said the sharp rise in new HIV and Aids cases last year could be linked to these Nation parties.

It is a problem not confined to Singapore.

In Hong Kong, the number of HIV-positive MSM (men who have sex with men) cases went up by almost a third - the highest annual increase seen in the MSM population.

A San Francisco Health Department study says that gay parties have contributed to a doubling of new Aids infections, with almost a third of party-goers admitting to having unprotected sex.

At the Nation parties, most are homosexual - with gays forming about 70 per cent of the crowd and lesbians 30 per cent.

There is also an almost equal mix of locals and foreigners. Most of them come from the region - Indonesia, Thailand, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea and Australia. Some come from as far away as the US and the UK.

But how wild does it really get?

Most say the atmosphere is similar to other mass parties held here, such as the annual Zouk Out and the New Year's Eve countdown.

Mr Ashburn Eng, 22, a fashion merchandiser who runs samekind.com, a gay-lesbian online community, said 'It's similar, except that the Nation parties are more campy and more fun. People bother to dress up, usually in red and white because it's held around National Day.'

Naturally, hanky panky goes on, say party-goers. Said a 29-year-old party-goer, who declined to be named 'You see a lot of making out, but it's just kissing or dancing closely or sizing each other up.'

Other party-goers say they have not seen anyone taking drugs being openly intimate in public.

But in the toilets, or once they leave the party, it could be a different story.

Said Sam (not his real name), a 30-year-old executive 'I've seen guys going into the toilets in groups. But most of the time, it may not actually happen at the party because it's too crowded.'

James said that only those who are high or drunk would dare to have sex in the open.

But there are those who dare.

At Zouk Out in 2000 at Siloso Beach on Sentosa, The New Paper on Sunday team saw a group of 10 men openly having sex.

They were engaging in the act in full view of other party-goers even though they were situated near the dance floor stage.

If party-goers can't get their kicks at the party, there are also pre- planned 'after-hours parties'.

Sam said 'Usually, they use the party as a chance to hook up and go back to their hotel rooms or homes.'

CRUISE PARTIES

Added James 'In the last few years, people have started holding parties out at sea. It's called the High Sea Cruises. When you're out on international waters, the parties are wilder.'

These parties might have been initiated to spread a musical genre or to promote Aids-awareness but, eventually, they have become associated with promiscuity.

This culture is carried over from Mardi Gras parties held overseas and attended by the jet-setting crowd.

For example, in San Francisco, which is well-known for its strong gay presence, such parties flourished during the 1960s - the hippie era of psychedelic drugs and free love.

Studies have shown that in cities like Sydney where gay communities thrive, there's high-risk sexual behaviour among gay men. So how safe are the parties here?

Party organiser fridae.com has HIV-awareness booths that dispense free condoms to party-goers.

But good sense tends to be forgotten, especially when there's plenty of alcohol.

Drugs such as ecstasy pills are suspected to find their way to the dance floor despite the strict checks at the entrance.

A party-goer, who identified herself as Mikko, 21, said she saw a guy who 'looked like he was high on drugs, doing the same dance over and over again.

'Later, I saw him escorted to an ambulance.'

Said Sam 'Usually, when the party-goers are high on ecstasy, nobody really cares about protection any more.

'There is also a pre-party event the day before and a post-party event the day after. Most of the regulars party on all three days.' 

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14 March 2005
The New Paper

It certainly brings in the dollars - pink dollars (revenue generated by gay consumers), that is.

The annual Nation party has attracted as many as 8,000 people from the region. The party-goers are mostly homosexual.

There are no available surveys on the amount of pink dollars generated, but Sydney's Mardi Gras, an annual gay parade, is said to rake in A$40 million ($51.3m) in tourist dollars.

Enough money to risk the spread of HIV?

No, say analysts. Singapore is not willing to go all out to woo the pink dollar if this leads to the spread of HIV.

SOCIAL COST

Economist Nizam Idris said 'In purely economic terms, such activities do bring in business for tourism.

'But if there's a social cost, then it can't be weighed in purely financial terms.

'And it seems that in this case, the social cost may outweigh the financial benefits, so I'm not surprised the Government is getting a bit cautious.

'I mean, money laundering is lucrative too, but do we want that in our society?'

Responding to last year's rejection of the application for a licence for the Snowball party, also organised by fridae.com, PM Lee Hsien Loong said wooing the pink dollar wasn't about 'all or nothing'.

He had said in December 'I think it's a matter of balance... of how we can have space for this group of people who are gays, whom we accept as Singaporeans.

'But at the same time, it's about respecting the outlook, values and perspective of the majority of Singaporeans.'

But that balance has been difficult to find.

NUS sociologist Tan Ern Ser noted 'I believe the Government tries to balance social inclusiveness and economic benefits, while recognising the Singapore mainstream is not pro-gay.

'For this reason, it permits gay parties, so long as they do not openly promote gay practices and lead to social problems such as HIV.

'I take it that the recent more cautious approach reflects a concern that the costs and risks of allowing gay parties or activities may far outweigh its benefits.'

MPs endorse Dr Balaji's comment about the possible link between the rise in new Aids cases and gay parties.

They say it is a valid concern.

SOCIAL PROBLEM

NMP Tan Sze Wee said 'The numbers speak for themselves. We don't know if it's a direct consequence (of the gay parties). But it's definitely a problem to be looked at.'

Dr Balaji revealed that the number of new cases of Aids infection rose 28 per cent last year, from 242 to 311.

Nine out of 10 of the new Aids suffferers are men and a third of them are gay.

There are more than 2,000 Aids patients in Singapore.

A counsellor from a local charity group noted 'Though the MSMs (men who have sex with men) make up only a third of the number of HIV cases, the incidence rate among homosexuals is actually more than 15 times that of heterosexuals.

'So naturally, parties which attract a large gay community become a concern.'

Dr Tan Cheng Bock, MP for Ayer Rajah, agreed 'It's logical that since the number of Aids cases are going up, and that the annual parties are attracting people from all over the world, the risk of HIV infection is higher.

'Gay people in certain countries have very different lifestyles from those in Singapore, and some countries have better Aids control measures than others.'

MP for Jalan Besar GRC Lily Neo added 'My interpretation of Dr Balaji's comments is that there's concern that foreign gay men, who may be HIV positive, may infect local gay men.'

While worried about the rise in the number of Aids cases, she stressed that the cause cannot be pinpointed unless studies are done.

But party-goers who have attended the Nation parties claim these events are no different from other large-scale parties such as Zouk Out.

On this, Dr Chong Weng Chiew, MP for Tanjong Pagar GRC, said 'I don't think it's only gay parties, but also parties in general which promote a certain kind of promiscuous lifestyle that involves open sex or drugs.

'Whether or not these parties pose a strong or weak contribution to the rise in Aids cases, they are still a cause for concern.'

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14 March 2005
The New Paper

IT is unfair to blame the Nation parties for the spike in new Aids cases, says its organiser, Jungle Media.

It is the Singapore subsidiary of Hong Kong-based fridae.com, said to be the region's largest online gay portal.

It disagreed with Dr Balaji Sadasivan, adding that the party was not used by foreign gays from areas with a high prevalence of HIV to fraternise with local gays.

Said Dr Stuart Koe, CEO of fridae.com 'We reject the claim as it is dangerous for a senior public health official to simplify the complex Aids issue and to believe that a single party can contribute to the spike.'

Ms Eileena Lee, pro-tem president of People Like Us (Plu3), a gay activist group, said it was unlikely that gays were having sex at the parties. She was at Nation.03.

'I didn't see any,' said Ms Lee, 34, a freelance sports therapist.

'There were just many people dancing around. Also, there were policemen at the party. If people were having sex there, they would have been arrested.

'The hypothesis will only further entrench homophobic attitudes, remarks and behaviour from the general public towards gay Singaporeans.'

Mr Roger Winder, programme director for Action For Aids (AFA), said blaming foreigners for local infections has been a standard reaction in many places.

AFA is a non-governmental organisation which works to control the spread of HIV/Aids in Singapore and to handle related issues.

Said Mr Winder 'There are parties organised for other party-goers at the same venue. Aren't we worried about them turning into sex fests too?'

Such fears may have been among the reasons that prompted the police to reject the application for the Snowball.04 indoor party last December.

The event, which was to have been held at Warehouse disco, was seen by the police as 'likely to be organised as a gay party which was contrary to the public interest'.

The police said it had approved parties, such as Nation.04, after receiving assurance that they would not be gay parties.

But last year, the police said people of the same gender were 'openly kissing and intimately touching each other' at the party.

Is there still a place for such parties?

Insisted Mr Winder 'The link between the fridae.com parties and sex fests has yet to be conclusively established.

'As far as AFA is concerned, the parties provide an opportunity to get the safer sex message across to party-goers.'

Ms Lee agreed 'There should be more proof to show the link between the Nation party and the rise in Aids cases. But even if there's proof, you can't entirely blame it on the party. What should be put into place is better safe-sex education.'

So what do the groups think are the possible reasons behind the spike last year?

Mr Winder said perhaps more MSMs (men who have sex with men) are coming forward for testing. Also, higher levels of unsafe sexual practices generally among MSMs.

Ms Lee added that there was also a rise in number of MSMs (which includes gay and bisexual men) being infected overseas.

Another possible reason A reduced vigilance among urban MSMs globally towards HIV prevention as a result of recent advances in medical science.

Said Ms Lee 'These advances have transformed HIV from a fatal disease to a chronic, though serious, illness.

'The higher incidence of MSM infection rates here may be part of the global trend of increased infection among urban MSMs.'

To curb future increases in Aids cases, the groups said the Government should engage the MSM community directly and build comprehensive structures that will provide them counselling and adequate medical care.

Said Mr Winder 'There should be more discussion on transmission trends in an objective and non-discriminatory manner.

'We should also be working with the community rather than against it.'

fridae.com said the authorities should build trust with the gay community in order to put into place effective strategies that will bring down the infection rates.