LGBT rights in Hong Kong
Encyclopedia
Homosexuality is legal in Hong Kong and public opinion shows increased awareness about and tolerance for LGBT people. However, there are only limited anti-discrimination laws and no legal recognition of same-sex couples.
agreed to decriminalize private, adult, non-commercial and consensual homosexual relations.
However, an unequal age of consent was established, 21 for gay men and 16 for heterosexuals, with the law remaining silent about lesbianism. LGBT rights groups lobbied the legislative council to equalize the age of consent law, but were told that the legal inequality was necessary to protect youth and preserve tradition http://www.sodomylaws.org/world/china/china.htm. A lawsuit was initiated to challenge the unequal age of consent in court.
In 2005, Justice Hartmann found that the unequal age of consent was unconstitutional under the Bill of Rights Ordinance, violating the right to equality. The ruling was upheld by the Hong Kong Court of Appeal Thus, since 2006, there is an equal age of consent of 16, for both heterosexual and homosexual sex.
(2005), this has been interpreted to include sexual orientation
. However, the Bill of Rights only applies to government sponsored discrimination and not the private sector http://www.sodomylaws.org/world/china/china.htm. Since the 1990s LGBT rights groups have lobbied the Legislative Council
to enact civil rights laws that include sexual orientation without success.
In 1993, former legislator Anna Wu
proposed an Equal Opportunities Bill through a private member's bill
to outlaw discrimination on a variety of grounds, including sex, disability, age, race, and sexuality. Her effort didn't yield any result until 1995 when equal opportunities law was enacted. However, sexuality was not included in the passage of the bill.
Currently, there is no law against discrimination on the ground of sexual orientation in Hong Kong.
Political opposition tends to come from social conservatives, often with evangelical Christian ties, who view homosexuality and cross-dressing as signs of immorality http://www.sodomylaws.org/world/china/china.htm. For example, after the court ruled against the unequal age of consent, Hong Kong leader Donald Tsang
, a devote Catholic, publicly opposed the court's decision and fought for an appeal until 2006 http://www.sodomylaws.org/world/china/china.htm. Otherwise most political parties and individual politicians tend to avoid making public statements in favor of LGBT rights, although this has slowly begun to change.
In 2010, Legislator Cyd Ho Sau-lan
, and former legislators Dr Fernando Cheung
, Reverend Fung Chi Wood and Dr Lo Wing-lok
participated in public demonstration against homophobia.
, and passport
, but does not allow the birth certificate
to be changed, after a person has had a sex change operation.
Nonetheless, in June 2009, the Hong Kong Government recognised cohabitating same-sex couples in its Domestic Violence Ordinance.
and the Ten Percent Club, were established. Today, several organizations, most notably Rainbow Action and Tongzhi Culture Society exist to campaign for LGBT rights and to organize various public educational and social events.
In 2006, RTHK broadcasted a television film called, Gay Lovers, which received criticism from social conservatives for, "encouraging" people to become gay. In 2007, the Broadcasting Authority ruled that the RTHK-produced programme "Gay Lovers" was "unfair, partial and biased towards homosexuality, and having the effect of promoting the acceptance of homosexual marriage." On 5 May 2008 Justice Michael Hartmann overturned the ruling of the Broadcasting Authority that "Gay Lovers" discussion on same sex marriage was deemed to have breached broadcasting guidelines for not including anti-gay views. http://www.fridae.com/newsfeatures/article.php?articleid=2223&viewarticle=1&searchtype=all
Criminal law
The criminal laws against male homosexuality were initially a product of British colonialism, with a maximum sentence of life imprisonment. During the 1970s – 1980s, there was a public debate about whether or not to reform the law in line with human rights principles. As a result, in 1991 the Legislative CouncilLegislative Council of Hong Kong
The Legislative Council is the unicameral legislature of Hong Kong.-History:The Legislative Council of Hong Kong was set up in 1843 as a colonial legislature under British rule...
agreed to decriminalize private, adult, non-commercial and consensual homosexual relations.
However, an unequal age of consent was established, 21 for gay men and 16 for heterosexuals, with the law remaining silent about lesbianism. LGBT rights groups lobbied the legislative council to equalize the age of consent law, but were told that the legal inequality was necessary to protect youth and preserve tradition http://www.sodomylaws.org/world/china/china.htm. A lawsuit was initiated to challenge the unequal age of consent in court.
In 2005, Justice Hartmann found that the unequal age of consent was unconstitutional under the Bill of Rights Ordinance, violating the right to equality. The ruling was upheld by the Hong Kong Court of Appeal Thus, since 2006, there is an equal age of consent of 16, for both heterosexual and homosexual sex.
Discrimination protections
The Hong Kong Bill of Rights Ordinance 1991 prohibits discrimination on a variety of grounds, including "other status". In the case of Leung TC William Roy v. Secretary for JusticeLeung TC William Roy v Secretary for Justice
Leung TC William Roy v Secretary for Justice is a leading Hong Kong High Court judicial review case on the equal protection on sexual orientation and the law of standing in Hong Kong...
(2005), this has been interpreted to include sexual orientation
Sexual orientation
Sexual orientation describes a pattern of emotional, romantic, or sexual attractions to the opposite sex, the same sex, both, or neither, and the genders that accompany them. By the convention of organized researchers, these attractions are subsumed under heterosexuality, homosexuality,...
. However, the Bill of Rights only applies to government sponsored discrimination and not the private sector http://www.sodomylaws.org/world/china/china.htm. Since the 1990s LGBT rights groups have lobbied the Legislative Council
Legislative Council of Hong Kong
The Legislative Council is the unicameral legislature of Hong Kong.-History:The Legislative Council of Hong Kong was set up in 1843 as a colonial legislature under British rule...
to enact civil rights laws that include sexual orientation without success.
In 1993, former legislator Anna Wu
Anna Wu
Anna Wu Hung-yuk , SBS, JP is a non-official member of the Executive Council of Hong Kong. She is a solicitor and graduated from the Faculty of Law of the University of Hong Kong....
proposed an Equal Opportunities Bill through a private member's bill
Private Member's Bill
A member of parliament’s legislative motion, called a private member's bill or a member's bill in some parliaments, is a proposed law introduced by a member of a legislature. In most countries with a parliamentary system, most bills are proposed by the government, not by individual members of the...
to outlaw discrimination on a variety of grounds, including sex, disability, age, race, and sexuality. Her effort didn't yield any result until 1995 when equal opportunities law was enacted. However, sexuality was not included in the passage of the bill.
Currently, there is no law against discrimination on the ground of sexual orientation in Hong Kong.
Political opposition tends to come from social conservatives, often with evangelical Christian ties, who view homosexuality and cross-dressing as signs of immorality http://www.sodomylaws.org/world/china/china.htm. For example, after the court ruled against the unequal age of consent, Hong Kong leader Donald Tsang
Donald Tsang
Sir Donald Tsang Yam-kuen, GBM, KBE is the current Chief Executive and President of the Executive Council of the Government of Hong Kong....
, a devote Catholic, publicly opposed the court's decision and fought for an appeal until 2006 http://www.sodomylaws.org/world/china/china.htm. Otherwise most political parties and individual politicians tend to avoid making public statements in favor of LGBT rights, although this has slowly begun to change.
In 2010, Legislator Cyd Ho Sau-lan
Cyd Ho
Cyd Ho Sau-lan is a member of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong for the Hong Kong Island constituency.Cyd Ho is a founding member of The Frontier, a pro-democracy political group, and since 2006, founding councillor of the World Future Council....
, and former legislators Dr Fernando Cheung
Fernando Cheung
Fernando Cheung Chiu-hung is a Hong Kong politician, the vice-chairman of the Civic Party, he is a former member of the Legislative Council.Cheung worked in the United States from 1988, and became a naturalized United States citizen. He graduated from the University of California, Berkeley in...
, Reverend Fung Chi Wood and Dr Lo Wing-lok
Lo Wing-lok
Lo Wing-lok , JP, MD is a Hong Kong doctor and politician.Lo was graduated from St. Paul's College and Faculty of Medicine of the University of Hong Kong. He was the member of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong through medical sector functional constituency from 1998 to 2004...
participated in public demonstration against homophobia.
Gender identity/expression
Cross-dressing per se is not illegal, although like homosexuality it remains a taboo topic. Hong Kong law allows change in legal documents such as the identity cardHong Kong Identity Card
The Hong Kong Identity Card is an official identity document issued by the Immigration Department of Hong Kong. The Hong Kong Permanent Identity Card is a class of HKID issued to Hong Kong residents who have the right of abode in Hong Kong SAR. According to the Registration of Persons Ordinance...
, and passport
Passport
A passport is a document, issued by a national government, which certifies, for the purpose of international travel, the identity and nationality of its holder. The elements of identity are name, date of birth, sex, and place of birth....
, but does not allow the birth certificate
Birth certificate
A birth certificate is a vital record that documents the birth of a child. The term "birth certificate" can refer to either the original document certifying the circumstances of the birth or to a certified copy of or representation of the ensuing registration of that birth...
to be changed, after a person has had a sex change operation.
Recognition of same-sex relationships
Same-sex marriage or civil unions are not currently recognised in Hong Kong.Nonetheless, in June 2009, the Hong Kong Government recognised cohabitating same-sex couples in its Domestic Violence Ordinance.
LGBT rights movement in Hong Kong
In the early 1990s, the first two LGBT rights groups, HORIZONSHORIZONS
HORIZONS is Hong Kong's second oldest gay group after Hong Kong Ten Percent Club.The organisation runs the Chinese Special Administrative Region's oldest counseling hotline for people affected by sexual orientation issues, which began operation months before HORIZONS was formally registered as a...
and the Ten Percent Club, were established. Today, several organizations, most notably Rainbow Action and Tongzhi Culture Society exist to campaign for LGBT rights and to organize various public educational and social events.
Living conditions
Along with several gay nightclubs, LGBT pride festivals occur yearly as well as other social events including film festivalsRepresentations in the media
Since the 1990s, several Hong Kong films have had LGBT characters or themes in them. Television programming tended to avoid LGBT characters or themes, until recently.In 2006, RTHK broadcasted a television film called, Gay Lovers, which received criticism from social conservatives for, "encouraging" people to become gay. In 2007, the Broadcasting Authority ruled that the RTHK-produced programme "Gay Lovers" was "unfair, partial and biased towards homosexuality, and having the effect of promoting the acceptance of homosexual marriage." On 5 May 2008 Justice Michael Hartmann overturned the ruling of the Broadcasting Authority that "Gay Lovers" discussion on same sex marriage was deemed to have breached broadcasting guidelines for not including anti-gay views. http://www.fridae.com/newsfeatures/article.php?articleid=2223&viewarticle=1&searchtype=all
Public opinion
Hong Kong is among the more accepting regions in Asia for LGBT people. A 2007 Gallup poll found that 56% of Hongkongers believed that the city was a "good place" for homosexuals, while 35% believed that it was "not a good place".Summary table
| Homosexuality legal |  |
| Equal age of consent | |
| Anti-discrimination laws in employment |  |
| Anti-discrimination laws in the provision of goods and services | |
| Anti-discrimination laws in all other areas (incl. indirect discrimination, hate speech) | |
| Same-sex marriage(s) | |
| Recognition of same-sex couples | |
| Both joint and step adoption by same-sex couples | |
| Gays allowed to serve in the military | not applicable, see Military of Hong Kong Military of Hong Kong Hong Kong is a special administrative region of the People's Republic of China, and formerly a British crown colony. As such it has never had any military force of its own, and defence have always been the responsibilities of the sovereign power. Currently defence of the territory is the duty of... |
| Right to change legal gender | |
| Access to IVF for lesbians | |
| MSM Men who have sex with men Men who have sex with men are male persons who engage in sexual activity with members of the same sex, regardless of how they identify themselves; many men choose not to accept sexual identities of homosexual or bisexual... s allowed to donate blood MSM blood donor controversy The Men who have sex with men blood donor controversy is a dispute over prohibitions on donations of blood or tissue for transplantation. MSM is a classification of men who engage in sex with other men, regardless of whether they identify themselves as homosexual, bisexual or heterosexual... |
|
See also
- Homosexuality in ChinaHomosexuality in ChinaHomosexuality in China refers to homosexuality in Chinese culture; which, as a term, is relatively ambiguous in the contemporary context, although many instances have been recorded in the dynastic histories.-Terminology in China:...
- Human rights in Hong KongHuman rights in Hong KongHuman rights in Hong Kong occasionally comes under the spotlight of the international community because of its world city status. This is occasionally used as a yardstick by commentators to judge whether the People's Republic of China has kept its end of the bargain of the "One Country, Two...
- Politics of Hong KongPolitics of Hong KongPolitics of Hong Kong takes place in a framework of a political system dominated by its constitutional document, the Basic Law of Hong Kong, its own legislature, the Chief Executive as the head of government, and of a multi-party system...
- Government of Hong KongGovernment of Hong KongThe Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China, commonly the Hong Kong Government, is led by the Chief Executive as Head of the Government, who is also the head of the Hong Kong SAR...