BEIJING: An advocacy group for sexual minorities in the Chinese capital has abruptly shut down in what supporters said was another sign of a crackdown by the government of Xi Jinping on values it does not endorse.
The Beijing LGBT Center said in a statement on Monday that it would stop operating “due to uncontrollable pressure”. Although the group was not the largest in the country, activists have said it was regarded as a symbol of the LGBT movement due to its location in the capital.
The centre established in 2008 had supported lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in their fight against discrimination and prejudice, organising events and offering counselling, medical resources and social support.
Its members included those who had filed lawsuits after being fired due to their sexual orientation, Hong Kong media reports said.
China has cracked down on sexual minorities in recent years, apparently fearing that the movement could challenge Communist Party rule.
Social media accounts of LGBT advocacy groups have been closed down, while the founder of a group calling for the protection of sexual minorities through legal action has been detained.
Chinese authorities decriminalised homosexuality in 1997, although same-sex marriage is not legal and social stigma is widespread.
Despite a period of relaxation in the 2000s and 2010s, in recent years there have been more crackdowns on the community, with university societies and Pride events discontinued.
Jinghua Qian, a freelance journalist and expert on queer issues in China, lamented the closure on Tuesday, describing it as “terribly sad”.
“Beijing LGBT+ Center is absolutely pivotal to queer advocacy and social welfare in China and it was basically the last major, long-running organisation standing after waves of crackdowns smashed everything else,” Qian wrote on Twitter.
Shanghai Pride — once the country’s largest annual celebration of gay rights — announced in 2020 it would not be held that year and has not taken place since, though many events in China were paused due to Covid.
Film and television content depicting gay romance is not allowed, and early last year the gay dating app Grindr was removed from digital stores.