Singapore's weeklong LGBT Pride celebrations have begun, but police have closed a photo exhibition of gays and lesbians -- citing laws around 'gross indecency'. A video message from Out actor Sir Ian McKellen opened the week, calling the event a platform to make gay voices heard in the tightly-controlled city state. "It's very important that gay people, wherever they are, should identify themselves, stick up for themselves, represent themselves, modestly and positively, so the rest of the world knows that we're here and we're not going to go away," said McKellen, who is on an Asian tour with the Royal Shakespeare Company. But, as the pride celebration was getting underway police closed a photography exhibit of gays and lesbians before it was to officially open. Singapore's censorship board ordered the exhibition closed because it showed photos of gay men and women kissing. The board said that the show violated Singapore law because it promoted "a homosexual lifestyle". The exhibition, entitled 'Kissing,' was a selection of 80 posed shots of same-sex kissing between fully clothed models. During the pride celebration there will be forums, film screenings and lectures. Several of the films to be shown are still awaiting approval from the censors. Under the current law 'gross indecency' between two men can lead to two years in jail. There have been growing calls in the tightly controlled nation for modernization of sex laws. The most recent came in April from Lee Kuan Yew, the man regarded as the father of modern Singapore. Lee, who served as Prime Minister from 1959 to 1990, and is the father of current Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong remains a powerful force in the cabinet of the city state. Lee said he plans to introduce a bill in Parliament to remove the ban on gay sex. Last year Singapore announced plans to decriminalize oral and anal sex for adult heterosexuals but sex between homosexuals would remain banned. Ref: 365gay.com (m)