Gay Sargent Arrested in Brazil - Homophobia?

[Lord Consul]

Brazilian military police have arrested an army sergeant who revealed that he was gay in an interview with a national news magazine at the weekend.

The ministry of defence says the sergeant is to be questioned about alleged desertion from the military and there is no question of discrimination.

Sgt Laci Marinho de Araujo, who suffers from ill-health, was moved from a Sao Paulo hospital to the capital Brasilia. Human rights groups say they are concerned about his welfare.

The arrest happened just as Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva was due to address the country's first national gay rights' conference.

Sgt Laci Marinho de Araujo and his partner, who is also a sergeant in the Brazilian army, featured on the front page of Epoca magazine. They gave an interview in which they talked openly about living together as a gay couple.

The two soldiers said they had been in a stable relationship for 10 years.
However, while they were taking part in a television interview on Wednesday, Sgt de Araujo was arrested by military police who surrounded the TV station until he came out.

Health problems

The sergeant, who says is being treated for a variety of medical problems including multiple sclerosis, was recently absent from his unit, and the army says he is accused of desertion.

A human rights group which has been in contact with the couple says they called in desperation asking for help, and it is concerned for his welfare.
Brazil's first national gay rights conference is taking place over the next four days.

President Lula's government has hailed the event as historic.

However, despite staging what is thought to be the biggest gay pride demonstration in the world in Sao Paulo, which this year attracted an estimated three million people, gay groups in Brazil say they still face enormous problems of discrimination and violence.

Between 1963 and 2007, activists say that more than 2,800 people were killed in Latin America's largest country because of their sexual orientation.

Before leaving the topic open for discussion, I might as well tell you my thoughts about the case described by the article above.

The two men, who both hold the rank of Sgt. in the Brazilian army, recently appeared on prime time TV giving interviews about their life as a queer couple in the army. They gave their interview in uniform and wearing make-up, something that many in the military saw as mudslinging the Armed Forces.

Both men also appeared in the TV show in a time when they should have been present at their army barracks. Leaving your post without an officer's permission is desertion. And it was for desertion that they were arrested, the official report says.

So, what do you guys think? Is this a case of Homophobia on the part of the Brazilian Armed forces or those two were rightfully punished?

[Farnan]

Yes they should be punished for leaving their post without permission. And if you're military has rules against making political statements in uniform they should be punished. Their sexual orientation should not allow them to bend the rules.

[Da Skinna]

They should be punished. But they're political statement and the fallout and upheaval this could create would more than make up for their actions.

Lol at wearing make-up though.

[boofhead]

Most countries also expect their national military uniform to be worn in an exemplary manner. Makeup? Please.....talk about bringing the armed forces into disrepute. They may as well have had clown faces painted on.

[Exarch]

if they broke the rules knowingly, they should be penalised for it

[Da Skinna]

AND because they're gay.

[Gary88]

i assume it was regular TV make up that everyone on screen wears but still, deserting your post used to be punishable by death so they should think themselves lucky.

[Lord Consul]

And if you're military has rules against making political statements in uniform they should be punished.

That's the point. Ordinary Sargents are not supposed to give interviews off-duty, even less while in uniform.

[Dr. Croccer]

Depends on the degree of his illness, if he was severly sick then the desertion is justified IMO.

Being gay is completely irrelevant.

[Da Skinna]

The timing of it all as well as the reaction makes this fishy.

Like the military is fighting hard to keep the godless sodomites at bay lest they be overrun with them!

[danzig]

Shrug sounds like his arrest was warranted regardless of the gay thing for desertion. Im sure some will try and say he was arrested BECAUSE he was gay and ignore the rest.

[CaesarBR]

and about the original thread idea...I think they deserved to be arrested 'cause they associated homosexuality with the army which is a bad thing to do, army is a manly institution, like it or not, they are not forbid to be gay but they should keep this for themselves, they should not say they are gays and the army would not ask...

so basically their infraction is to mix their personal ridiculous gay life with the Army of the Brazilian Republic...

[jman47]

i dont think they are being arrested for being gay, but why would that matter either?

you cant be discriminated against for a choice, that is the fault of the entire gay 'rights' movement.

you choose who you sleep with, and you choose who your attracted to as well. and you can be attracted to somebody who is not physically appealing in your opinion when they have everything else you want in a person, unless your shallow that is.

Minorities and women can be discriminated against because they have no choice in the matter, but you can choose whether you sleep with a man or a woman, and bisexuality only proves that point further.

[Syron]

If it happened as reported then no it's not homophobia. What they did does constitute desertion and so his arrest is perfectly correct.

There may be a homophobic motive behind the overzealousness of the arrest but the fact is the sgt's gave the military all the excuse they needed so I can't really sympathise.

[Lord Consul]

There may be a homophobic motive behind the overzealousness of the arrest [...]

That's the problem. I mean, two hundred men of the Military Police surrounded the TV studio and arrested him as soon as he left the building. Would they do that if the sgt in question had not been involved in what the upper echelons call "shameful conduct"?

We must also bear in mind that only a couple of days ealier São Paulo hosted the largest gay rights parade ever witnessed on this planet, with more than 2 million people in the streets.

[Mega Tortas de Bodemloze]

The NCOs(Non Commissioned Officers) in question had an agenda and executed it. They obviously knew their conduct in uniform was considered unbecomming by the military and would be dealt with harshly. What's their true agenda I couldn't say. Will the repercusions be more than they atticipated, most probably. If this was done to shed some kind of light on prejudice I think they could have acheived afar better result without antagonizing the military and bringing severe actions on themselves.

I dunno ....just my opinion.

Exarch....... ........

[Harry Lime]

Actually I've changed my mind. All the valid points seem to have already been made, the rest was just homophobic rants or off topic. I see no reason to open this again. If someone can provide me with a very good reason to do so via PM, I may consider it