China paper splashes nation’s “first gay marriage”

AFP: “State press splashed a front-page photo of China’s first publicly ‘married’ gay couple on Wednesday — the latest sign of new openness about homosexuality in a country where it has long been taboo . . . Zeng Anquan, 45, and Pan Wenjie, 27, tied the knot at a gay bar in the southwestern city of Chengdu, the paper said, calling it ‘the first such public event in the country.’ Homosexuality remains a sensitive issue in China. It was officially considered a form of mental illness as recently as 2001. Same-sex marriages or civil unions have no legal basis.”