New hotline to offer help to gay people

L. Qiwen, X. Jiang

The first Chinese free hotline offering advice to gay people on a range of subjects has been launched. Volunteers in Guangzhou and Shanghai have joined forces for the initiative, which will provide advice on psychological problems, legal issues and HIV/AIDS. Hong Kong-based Chi Heng Foundation, which is sponsoring the service, has previously operated a localized hotline in Shanghai, to provide psychological and legal help, and another hotline in Guangzhou to support people with HIV/AIDS. The hotline has been set up because the previous localized services were overloaded with calls from people all over the mainland and even overseas, who were charged long-distance rates.