For years, homosexuality was viewed as a mental disorder in China, and gays and lesbians were persecuted. But now they are coming out of the shadows - singing and dancing, writes Miriam Donohoe, Asia Correspondent.

Anna slips onto the small dance-floor in the smoke-filled Beijing bar wearing a black leather bikini and cracking a whip. For the next 15 minutes the tall, heavily made-up drag queen wriggles and writhes to the sound of music. The 20 or so, mainly male, customers in the Half and Half Bar on a recent Friday night are riveted by every sensuous move. They are practically drooling as Anna slips the whip between his long legs.

When Anna finishes his act, the host for the night's drag shows, Mei Mei, reappears in a long tight-fitting dress. He coos at the attentive audience: "I hope you are enjoying yourselves", as he moves from table to table chatting up the mostly Chinese customers.

"Will you come and sing with me?" Mei Mei whispers into the ear of Thomas from Norway. Thomas happily submits and follows Mei Mei to the dance floor. He sits on Mei Mei's lap as the host sings two verses of a Chinese song.

The Half and Half bar in Beijing's lively Sanlitun district is the city's oldest gay establishment. Its entrance is on a narrow alleyway, which, by day, is home to thriving market stalls. But, by night, this is one of the hubs of the growing gay scene in the Chinese capital.

There was a time when members of Beijing's gay community were nervous to be seen coming to the Half and Half, or any other of the three gay bars in town. Homosexuality was frowned upon and was deep in the closet. The bar faced regular interference from local police. While China never had a law against homosexuality, the government considered it a social disgrace. The police regularly rounded up gays and lesbians and charged them with hooliganism or disturbing public order.

The Chinese Psychiatric Association also listed homosexuality as a form of mental illness.

But Chinese society is now trying to grapple with the reality of homosexuality. Gay men and women are no longer afraid to visit gay bars. "It is still very hard to meet people in this city," says Xiao Bao (24) a regular at the Half and Half. "This is the only chance I get to meet other guys. Often I just come for companionship and not sex."

Xiao Bao says there are still too few places of entertainment in Beijing for gay people. "There are only four gay bars and one exclusively gay disco for an estimated gay population in Beijing of 300,000. That is not enough."

On Saturday nights, Xiao Bao, who has dyed red hair, goes to the Night Man Disco. "I love to dance. It is good fun and I have met many partners there," he says.

Official figures released by the Ministry of Public Health put the male gay population in the country at between 30 and 40 million, or 3 per cent of China's total population. No figures are available for lesbians, but China is home to potentially the largest gay and lesbian population in the world.

A major breakthrough in the recognition of homosexuality came with the publication of the January edition of the Chinese Academy of Social Science (CASS) magazine, Modern Civilisation Pictorial. The issue was devoted entirely to exploring the country's growing gay and lesbian scene.

"Homosexuals Exist Among Us!" screamed the headline on the front cover. "The Cost of a Game - a Money-Boy's Story" was the sub-heading.

The magazine caused a stir, providing an exposé of the life and times of China's growing gay community. Articles included the "confessions" of a rent boy, advice for lonely gays and lesbians, and profiles of prominent homosexuals in the art and film world.

Already it is being credited with helping to bring the marginalised gay and lesbian community out of the murky shadows and close to the mainstream in this vast country of 1.3 billion people. Significantly, the normally strict Chinese censors did not block the publication of the magazine.

Its contents have provided a real boost to members of the gay community. "It is a big breakthrough and a good sign for the future," says Peter, a 22-year-old Beijing-based politics and history student who only a year ago realised he was gay.

He is nervous about having his Chinese name published and insists on using an English one. No one in his home province of Anhui in east China knows he is gay.

"My parents would kill me if they found out," he says. "I have just come back after being home for the Chinese New Year and I couldn't bring myself to tell my mother, or father, or younger sister. The family would be destroyed."

Peter was going out with a girl from college when he fell in love with a male student. "It was a very difficult time for me. I was so confused, but in the end my love for Paul overcame everything. My girlfriend was devastated and was very angry."

Peter visits gay bars at weekends, and is only now beginning to come to terms with his sexual orientation. "It is not easy in China. I imagine it is harder here than in the West. But things are improving. I am enjoying going to gay bars as I can be comfortable with myself. I don't have to hide what I am. My big wish is that some day I can tell my family what I really am. I think it will take some time yet."

Last April, the Chinese Psychiatric Association removed homosexuality from its list of mental illnesses. Revised guidelines state that homosexual behaviour is not abnormal, and that same-sex desires are only a "mental disorder" for people unhappy with their orientation. Those who are happy with being gay have no need of psychiatric help.

According to Li Yinghe, a renowned sociologist with the CASS and author of an academic book on homosexuality, this move and the fact the authorities gave their blessing to the recent magazine publication are major steps forward.

"Twenty years ago, no one knew there were homosexuals in this country. It was considered a freak thing. Now more people are prepared to come out and admit they are gay. People working in the area of the arts and film have been the first to come out in the last 10 years. But now more and more other professionals and students are following suit."

The Communist government, she says, is increasingly willing to give gay people their social space so long as they do not overtly challenge the regime. Western-style political activism is not an option for any Chinese, let alone gays and lesbians.

In line with China's general sexual awakening, Li says the loosening of the stranglehold the Communist party has on its people is also helping the acceptance of homosexuality.

Last year, Li made a submission to the National People's Congress, the country's parliament, to legislate for gay marriages. It was rejected, but it is something which she thinks will happen in time.

According to a barman at the Half and Half who wants to be known as Gerry, the government is keeping one eye open and one eye closed on homosexuality. "The only time the police interfere now is if rent boys are trying to ply their trade in the bar."

MANY homosexuals in China's cities live in small but growing underground communities, Gerry adds. "Places like the Half and Half are very important in China. Private space is hard to find as most young people live with their parents until they get married, unlike in America for example." The Internet has also revolutionised gay life in China, with approximately 250 web sites giving homosexuals an anonymous way to find others of like mind.

But with increasing acceptance of homosexuality there is growing concern about AIDS. The Vice Minister for Health, Yin Dakui, warned in a recent interview with the official news agency, Xinhua, that China must pay important attention to the spread of AIDS through the homosexual community. "The prevention of AIDS caused by sexual transfer will become a formidable challenge in China because of an unaccountable number of homosexuals," he added.

As China's gay community come out, they will face many challenges in the years ahead.