Elton John and his partner David Furnish. Elton John has paid tribute to gay rights campaigners and urged others around the world to "stand up and speak out" against homophobia. The British singer, who tied the knot with long-term partner David Furnish in a civil partnership ceremony in 2005, said people must stand up for the human rights of homosexuals. "In December 2005, I was legally bound to the man I love," he wrote in the New Statesman magazine. "It's my legal right and my human right. And I wanted everyone to know, I wanted to shout about it. "In some countries, my voice would have been drowned out. Maybe even stamped out. "Men and women are persecuted and attacked every day all over the world, just because of who they love." The singer, who celebrates his 60th birthday on Sunday, paid tribute to William Hernandez, a gay rights campaigner. Amnesty International says Hernandez and others in his organization Entre Amigos (Between Friends) have received death threats for their work. "People like William are a lot braver than me. When the bigots shout abuse, they shout back," the singer wrote. "Whether the bigot is in our local pub or a thousand miles away, we should all stand up and speak out for these basic human rights." 點擊查看更多雙語新聞 (Reuters)

日前，埃爾頓·約翰對同性戀權益保護者深表敬意，并呼吁世界各地的人們“站起來，對反同性戀偏見說不”。 2005年，這位英國歌手與交往了很久的男友大衛·弗尼什在一個民事伴侶關系儀式中喜結連理。他說，人們應該維護同性戀者的人權。 他在《新政治家》雜志中寫道，“2005年12月，我和我愛的男人結為法定伴侶。這是我的法律權利，也是我的人權。我希望每個人都能認識到這一點，我要大聲疾呼。” “但在有些國家，我的聲音可能會被淹沒，甚至會被撲滅。” “世界各地每天都有很多男性和女性受到迫害和攻擊，而原因僅僅是因為他們愛了‘不該愛的人’。” 將于本周日慶祝六十大壽的埃爾頓·約翰對同性戀權益保護者威廉·赫南德斯深表敬意。 據國際特赦組織稱，赫南德斯和他所創建的“同志組織”中的其他盟友們還因此受到過死亡的威脅。 約翰在雜志中寫道，“像威廉那樣的人們要比我勇敢的多。當頑固偏見者們唧歪亂叫，他們則毫不猶豫的予以還擊。” “無論偏見者們在我們身邊，還是在別處，我們都應該站起來，積極爭取我們的基本人權。” （ 英語點津姍姍編輯）