Editor's Note:

As one of the first media outlets to report China's newly-revised blood donation regulations, Metro Beijing ran the story Lesbian blood ban lifted on its front page on July 3.

After 14 years, the ban on lesbians from donating blood was axed even though restrictions for sexually active homosexual men remained. The policy change generated much attention not only from the Chinese gay community, but also from the foreign media.

The story:

New blood donation regulations released by the Ministry of Health last year took effect on July 1. They differed from previous laws passed in 1998 in that they eradicated discrimination against female donors based on their sexuality.

Prominent sexologist Li Yinhe explained the reason for the ban in 1998, and said that the new move reflected progress in the country's views on gay people and AIDS.

Lesbians in China welcomed the new regulations that enshrined their right to donate blood yet added there is further room for improvement, such as giving the same rights to homosexual men.

The back story:

I didn't anticipate that my first story on a gay and lesbian issue would involve such a landmark move.

Although Metro Beijing has been long taken an interest in and reported on issues in the gay community, I had never previously been involved in such stories. My opportunity arose because a colleague normally responsible for the beat was on leave.

The report appeared on the front page of Metro Beijing, and was soon cited by CNN and several other foreign media outlets. My Chinese colleagues and I were all glad that the news was able to draw international publicity, however, a foreign copy editor noted the attention could be a veiled jibe at China because lesbians in many other countries have been allowed to donate blood for years.

I'm not sure if this was the motive of the foreign media outlets that carried the story, but the news proved it's never too late for a country to make progress.

Days after the story was referred to by CNN and The Times of India, I received a phone call from the US on Tuesday evening. A journalist, who claimed to be from an American bureau for the Voice of Russia, said she wanted to conduct an interview with me about the story.

As a reporter at the Global Times for more than three years, I've personally interviewed countless people for stories. However, this was the first time I had been the subject for an interview.

The interviewer mainly asked about the current situation facing the gay community in China, including how public perceptions about people in same-sex relationships have changed over the past few decades. Naturally, some questions were about the new blood donation policy and whether or not China was facing a donated blood shortage.

I felt pleased at the opportunity to tell a foreign audience about how regulations have evolved in China, but was nervous when a colleague reminded me my voice would be broadcast on the other side of the Pacific.

After the 20-minute interview, I began to consider why foreign media outlets were paying so much attention to the story and how well they actually understood China's new blood donation regulations.

Judging from the questions I was asked during the interview, their interest appeared to surround what had triggered Chinese authorities' motivations to lift the ban.

Xu Bin (quoted as "Xian" in the original report), director of Common Language, an NGO dedicated to supporting lesbians and bisexuals, noted gay people only account for a small percentage of the whole population, meaning blood donated by them wouldn't dramatically bolster supplies.

I agreed with expert Li Yinhe's view that China has progressed in better understanding the link between homosexuals and AIDS, even though stigmas held onto by many people in the wider community have proved harder to debunk.

Xu gave me a document recounting many lesbians' experiences of being refused for blood donations after the Wenchuan earthquake in Sichuan Province in 2008.

She said that at a time when the whole nation was enthusiastically donating money or blood to help survivors, many gay men and women were disappointed to learn their blood wasn't welcome as they were deemed to belong to a "high-risk group" vulnerable to HIV/AIDS.

Among the stories shared with me was that of an anonymous lesbian who revealed she had secretly donated blood more than 50 times by concealing her sexuality.

Every time she applied to donate blood, she had received a message from the blood donation center confirming she was a suitable candidate.

"I'm not an AIDS carrier just because I'm attracted to females. I always hoped that one day regulations would be revised so that donors would be judged on the suitability of their blood, not their sexuality," she said.

She also said that she was looking forward to the day she could go with her girlfriend hand-in-hand to donate blood and receive gratitude from nurses accepting donations. Now, her dream has been realized.

Though still barred from donating, a 21-year-old homosexual surnamed Zhang told Metro Beijing that he could understand, if not appreciate, the current regulations.

"Not all problems with blood can be detected," he said. "After contracting HIV, there's a window period when it can't be detected."

Zhang, who is healthy and currently sexually inactive, said he has donated blood several times in the past. "The safety of blood is the most important aspect. If I enter a sexual relationship in the future, I won't donate."

Due to the two- to three-week undetectable "window period" after contracting HIV, there is ban or "postponement" blood donation policy for sexually active homosexuals implemented in several countries. In the UK, for example, homosexuals can donate blood if they have abstained from sex for 12 months.

Xu said that with the advancement of medical technology and the change of AIDS epidemic groups, bans related to blood donation should change with the times. She hopes that one day homosexual men will be able to donate blood in China.

"The wording of current regulations that ban 'men who have sex with men' should be replaced with 'having high-risk behavior.' This would help eliminate possible discrimination against homosexuals," she suggested.