Sir Elton John
© AFP/Getty Images/File Peter KramerLONDON (AFP) - In an article on human rights published in British weekly magazine the New Statesman, he wrote that he was privileged to be able to have his relationship with long-term love, Canadian filmmaker David Furnish, recognised in law.
"In December 2005, I was legally bound to the man I love. It's my legal right and my human right. And I wanted everyone to know, I wanted to shout about it," he said of their civil partnership ceremony.
"In some countries, my voice would have been drowned out. Maybe even stamped out. In some European countries the bigots have a loud voice. Pride marches are banned in some east European cities.
"Men and women are persecuted and attacked every day all over the world, just because of who they love and who they make love to."
Elton, who celebrates his 60th birthday on March 25, drew attention to William Hernandez, a gay rights activist from El Salvador, whose cause has been taken up by human rights group Amnesty International.
Hernandez and other members of his Between Friends Association have received death threats, apparently to stop their work providing sex education to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people and the wider public.
"People like William are a lot braver than me. When the bigots shout abuse, they shout back," Elton wrote.
"My voice has served me pretty well over the years; I hope maybe it can do him some good too. But we need more voices.
"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."
The flamboyant performer, famous for hits such as "Goodbye, Yellow Brick Road" and "Rocket Man", was writing for the magazine's "It Could Have Been Me" column, in which high-profile British figures highlight Amnesty cases.
©AFP