Top leader stands up for patients with HIV

A seismic shift happened for the rights of people infected with HIV when incoming premier Li Keqiang insisted that they receive full access to hospital treatment.

In November, HIV-positive patient Xiao Feng from Tianjin faked his medical records to conceal his HIV-positive status in order to receive an operation for lung cancer. It was this case that prompted Li to speak out.

But aside from the HIV issue, gays might as well have been invisible in 2012, from an official point of view. Gay people stand in a gray area under Chinese law. Their rights are not explicitly protected or denied, and they enjoy the same rights and privileges as other people - to an extent.

Gay marriage is not legal, and there are no openly gay lawmakers in China. Chinese newspapers take care not to promote or denigrate homosexuality. And many gay people still wait until their parents die before coming out of the closet.

On Valentine's Day, two gay couples went to the Chaoyang district registration office and held a wedding ceremony outside. On April 16, some 50 Chinese gay and lesbian rights groups organized a campaign to support Starbucks because of its pro-gay marriage policies. On May 17, the International Day against Homophobia, some gay organizations started an online protest against the Beijing National Olympic Psychological Hospital for their "gay treatment," which supposedly could make gay people straight. The hospital later removed gay treatment from its website.

In June, the Beijing LGBT Center struggled to find a new home because nearby residents claimed the center would impact their children's development. The center found a new home at Guangxi Jiayuan in Liufang, Chaoyang district, by the end of June.

In July lesbians, who were prohibited from giving blood since 1998, were allowed to donate.

Sexologist Li Yinhe said that the ban was because "the nation easily believed that being a homosexual equates to AIDS."