Homosexuality in Hong Kong

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Introduction

In the last decade, the issue of homosexuality has been widely discussed and known in Hong Kong. People have more opportunities to approach the word `homosexuality' in their daily life through literatures, movies and occasional news revealing celebrities' homosexual behaviors. Simultaneously there has also been significant growth in commercial venues such as restaurants and bars, catering to gays and lesbians. In short, the social context of Hong Kong and the attitudes gays and lesbians are likely to hold about their sexual orientation are very different from those of previous generations.

However, this is not proper to indicate that the homosexual minority, which consists of 6 to 10 percent of population in Hong Kong society (Ammon, 2002), has had an equal position as other residents. (Some of the homosexuals encountered barriers and discriminations towards employments, promotions, housing applications and many of them dealt with some level of social ostracism. )The situation can be partially attributed to the conservative people who still having strong oppositions against homosexual behaviors. They deem it an imposition of decadent western values on such a society, which is unknown in tradition Chinese culture.

Although the criminal law in 1991 has been reformed to partially legalize homosexuality, (refer to Appendix A) the unsuccessful attempts to introduce anti-discrimination legislation between 1993 and 1997 have reflected that the government favored educational measures rather than legislation to combat discrimination. Nonetheless, it seems that people may not change their images or attitudes towards homosexuality easily in consciousness, within a comparatively short interval. This essay mainly exp...

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Appendix

A.

The legal situation regarding male homosexual sex in Hong Kong up until its reform in 1991 is outlined in a Hong Kong Government white paper:

`A homosexual act between men is in all circumstances a criminal offence under provisions proscribing gross indecency or buggery (anal intercourse). Gross indecency is not defined by statute. It covers any act involving gross sexual indecency between two men. The maximum penalty for an act of gross indecency between men is imprisonment for two years; for an act of buggery the maximum sentence is life imprisonment. It is immaterial to the offence that the acts take place voluntarily between two adults in private. If discovered, they would both be liable to prosecution and imprisonment.'

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