Pink Dot draws record numbers

The Pink Dot rally drew an estimated 26,000 people in Singapore on Saturday, a new record for attendance of the annual event that has been in place since 2009.

Gay rights activists - wearing all manner of pink attire – gathered for a four-hour rally that featured musical performances and ended with the crowd holding pink lights in the air to form a giant pink dot.

"This is a social movement that is seeking to promote inclusiveness in Singapore," Janice Koh, an ambassador for the rally, told the AFP news agency. "Pink Dot's success goes to show that more Singaporeans are becoming open about showing their support for the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) community."

In Singapore, a law known as Section 377A makes sex between two men a crime. It dates back to British colonial rule of Singapore and is not actively enforced. However, many activists want to see it repealed.

Lawrence Khong leads the Faith Community Baptist Church, which has around 10,000 members, and is one of the leading activists speaking out against the Pink Dot rally. On Friday he criticized the government for allowing the rally to take place.

"I find it even more disconcerting that the event is being used as a platform of public persuasion to push their alternative lifestyle," he said according to the Associated Press. "I would like to see our government leaders draw a clear line on where they now stand with regard to this moral issue."

Another protest movement is being headed by Noor Deros, a Muslim teacher who encouraged Muslims to avoid the Pink Dot rally and instead to wear white to mosques on Saturday evening for special prayers that commemorate the start of Ramadan.

Paerin Choa, a Pink Dot organizer, said in a statement that "we are, at the end of the day, one big national family, and it is especially humbling this year, to see the sheer support we have received from Singaporeans from all walks of life."

mz/kms (AP, AFP, dpa)