'The Abominable Crime' gay documentary featuring Jamaica debuts in US

An international documentary alleging that being gay in Jamaica can be a death sentence is set to debut in the US capital, Washington DC today.



The production titled 'The Abominable Crime' by Micah Fink, will focus on gay Jamaicans who say they have been forced to flee their country and face the risks and challenges of seeking asylum abroad.



The film will be screened several times over the next week as part of a week-long film festival produced by the US-based Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting.



The documentary alleges that intolerance is accepted in Jamaica and being gay here can be a death sentence.



The participants in the documentary include former parliamentarian and attorney-at-law Ernest Smith who spoke of his views against homosexuality.



"I don't hate homosexuals, I detest their filthy ways," says Smith in the documentary.



A discussion involving Jamaican human-rights activist Maurice Tomlinson is to follow tonight’s premiere.



The documentary will also include accounts from the United Kingdom, the US, the Netherlands and Canada.



The Pulitzer Center originally sent the New York-based Fink to Jamaica to document issues of HIV and AIDS.



The Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting is an American news media organization established in 2006 that sponsors independent reporting that other media outlets are less willing or able to undertake on their own.



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