Authorities in Beijing are reconsidering their publicity tactics after failing to attract homosexuals to the city's first government-run gay Internet forum after two months on line.

Site managers admit the "Forum for Comrades" - named after the slang term for homosexuals and aimed at delivering gay health information - may have suffered from a lack of publicity.

The site failed to attract postings on its notice board on www.cystd.com, an official Website of the Disease Prevention and Control Center of Chaoyang District to promote AIDS prevention knowledge, said Fu Qingyuan, an official with the center.

The forum had two chatrooms: one for same-sex lovers to share their emotions and experiences; and the other for health advisers to offer counseling and advice on AIDS, said Fu, who is in charge of the Website.

"We actually opened the forum in June, but didn't publicize the issue because we feared it might spur debate among the public," he said. "After all, this is the first government-backed forum in Beijing to openly discuss same-sex love, which is a highly controversial issue in China."

Less than 10 postings had been put up and the site had recorded about 1,000 clicks in total by Monday.

But after a report in Monday's Beijing Times newspaper, the number of postings had risen to 30 by midday.

"I've found this Website only today," wrote a Internet user who gave his name as "Call for Love". "I hope the government and society will understand us: we 'comrades' are as good, faithful and law-abiding as anyone else. Please do not discriminate against us, or treat us only as AIDS patients."

Fu said few people joined the discussions probably because they thought their postings would be considered obscene and deleted.

"Such fears are really unnecessary because the forum is designed for health advisers to hear this group's actual needs, enhance communication and prevent the potential spread of AIDS," he said. "We won't delete any message except those that offer prostitution services or contain pornographic pictures."

He said the center may consider launching a moderate media campaign to publicize the forum, but sparingly. "Again we'll be very careful because it's a sensitive and touchy issue."

Alongside the comrades' forum, Fu's Website also publishes domestic and international developments on AIDS.