Gay sex immoral says General Pace

Gay rights groups in the US have complained after the country's top military commander said he believed homosexual acts were "immoral".

Marine General Peter Pace, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said he backed the Pentagon's "don't ask, don't tell" policy regarding homosexuality.

The policy bans homosexual acts between members of the military.

A gay rights group called the comments "a slap in the face to gay men and women serving with honor and bravery".

Joe Solomonese, president of Human Rights Campaign, said: "What is immoral is to weaken our national security because of personal prejudices."

Discrimination claim

Under the "don't ask, don't tell" policy, introduced in 1994 to relax a complete ban on gays, commanders are not allowed to enquire about the sexual orientation of their personnel.

Soldiers, sailors and air force staff are not supposed to reveal their homosexuality, and are banned from engaging in homosexual acts.

"I believe homosexual acts between two individuals are immoral and that we should not condone immoral acts," General Pace said.

"As an individual, I would not want (acceptance of gay behavior) to be our policy, just like I would not want it to be our policy that if we were to find out that so-and-so was sleeping with somebody else's wife, that we would just look the other way, which we do not. We prosecute that kind of immoral Behavior," he said.

Critics say the policy is discriminatory, and also counterproductive, as it may undermine recruitment as the US military is struggling to maintain sufficient forces in Iraq and Afghanistan.

A 2005 government audit said 10,000 troops, including more than 50 specialists in Arabic, have been discharged because of the policy.

CFPA: Homosexual acts between people of the same sex IS immoral and the U.S. government should not help gays alleviate their shame and guilt by saying that their life style is OK or that there's nothing wrong with it. You don't maintain sufficient forces in Iraq and Afghanistan by opening the doors to our military to sexual perverts.

13 March 2007