Just days after openly gay NZ Defence Force members marched in the Pride Parade it has been revealed that a distressed New Zealand soldier reportedly took his own life in Afghanistan almost a year ago, just hours after confessing his feelings for a male colleague of junior rank. Corporal Douglas Hughes, 26, was on his second tour of duty to Afghanistan. Hughes' family believe the death was preventable and are critical of the actions of the sergeant. They believe he was bullied because he was gay and that his death, in the early hours of April 3 at the forward patrol base Romero in Bamiyan province, raises questions about frontline attitudes to gay soldiers. Read the Sunday Star-Times investigation here
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Sunday, 3rd March 2013 - 11:34am