LGBT rights in Hong Kong
| LGBT rights in Hong Kong | |
|---|---|
|
|
| Same-sex sexual activity legal? |
Female homosexuality: Always legal age of consent equalized in 2006 |
| Gender identity/expression | A transsexual person who has received a full sex re-assignment surgery is allowed to change the legal gender, except the "sex at birth" |
| Discrimination protections | The Hong Kong Bill of Rights Ordinance (Cap. 383) protects individuals against sexual orientation discrimination from the Government and public authorities of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region |
| Family rights | |
| Recognition of relationships |
None |
|
Restrictions:
|
"Marriage" is defined as the voluntary union for life of one man and one woman to the exclusion of all others. A transsexual person who has received a full sex re-assignment surgery is to be treated, at marriage registration, as being of the sex to which the person is re-assigned and is therefore eligible to marry a partner of the opposite sex |
| Adoption |
Same-sex couples may not adopt jointly and cannot have kids together at all Homosexuality is legal in Hong Kong and public opinion shows increased awareness about and acceptance for LGBT people. The Hong Kong Bill of Rights Ordinance (Cap. 383) protects individuals against sexual orientation discrimination from the Government and public authorities of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. However, there is no legal recognition of same-sex couples. |
Female homosexuality: Always legal
Same-sex couples may not adopt jointly and cannot have kids together at all
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) persons in Hong Kong may face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents.
After the 1967 decriminalisation of homosexuality in the United Kingdom, there were moves to undertake a similar reform in Hong Kong. Governor Murray MacLehose privately supported gay rights but he and others felt that the local community would not support decriminalisation.
As a British colony Hong Kong's criminal laws against male homosexual acts were initially a reflection of British law, with a maximum sentence of life imprisonment. During the 1970s and 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 Council agreed to decriminalise 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 equalise the age of consent law, but were told that the legal inequality was necessary to protect youth and preserve tradition. 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.
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 Justice (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. Since the 1990s LGBT rights groups have lobbied the Legislative Council to enact civil rights laws that include sexual orientation without success.
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Wikipedia