Sam Matangi, pictured at the recent Hui takataapui An Auckland-based gay man of Cook Islands origin says he hopes the island nation's government will listen to their queen's concern that the law criminalising gay men is unfair. Male homosexuality is illegal in the Cook Islands. Consensual male sodomy is punishable by up to seven years' imprisonment while 'indecency' between males is punishable by up to five years' imprisonment. There are no comparable laws against lesbians. Many Pacific states have similar laws. Takitumu paramount chief Marie Pa Ariki has said she believes glbti people should be treated on an equal basis with the rest of the population and that criminalising gay men is "unfair." "For royalty to say this is extremely heartening," says Sam Matangi who is of Cook Islands and Maori origin. "I would hope that the government and the people of the Cook Islands might listen and act on this." Matangi says as a gay man he is glad he grew up in New Zealand "where we are liberated... I can't imagine what it must be like to be gay in a small place like an island in the pacific where the people around you believe you should be punished just for being yourself. I hope they move forward... it's a small thing for the country as a whole but a very big thing for its gay people." Matangi says he hopes others in New Zealand and in the Cook Islands will take up the stance of the chief, or 'the Queen' as she is referred to by some, and speak out, but he understands that that may be extremely difficult for people in the country itself to do. Pa Ariki's position has been applauded by the NZ AIDS Foundation which sees decriminalisation as an important step in enabling health and safe sex programmes to be targeted at vulnerable gay men in the region. For ten days GayNZ.com Daily News has been trying to connect with the Cook Islands government and more recently their Wellington High Commission. Neither has so far replied to our requests.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Thursday, 27th November 2014 - 7:03am