HONG KONG: The Hong Kong government said on Wednesday (Jul 2) it will propose legislation to recognise a limited set of rights for same-sex couples whose marriages are registered abroad, as it seeks to comply with a landmark court ruling.
The city’s top judges had unanimously defined marriage as “confined to opposite-sex couples” in September 2023. But the same ruling also ordered the government to create an “alternative framework” within two years that recognises same-sex couples’ legal rights.
In a policy paper published on Wednesday, the Hong Kong government wrote that it “recommends legislation to allow same-sex couples to apply for registration under a newly established registration mechanism”.
The proposal is limited to healthcare-related rights – such as hospital visits, making medical decisions, sharing medical information and organ donation – and rights related to a deceased person’s body.
To be eligible, adult couples must have been lawfully married abroad, with at least one person a Hong Kong resident.
“There are different views in society regarding the legal recognition of same-sex couples’ relationships,” the government added.
“We must make careful deliberations and … strike a balance, to avoid causing social rifts and affecting social harmony.”
Lawmakers will discuss the issue on Thursday, Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Erick Tsang told journalists, according to local newspaper Ming Pao.
He declined to specify a target date for passing the Bill.
Hong Kong reformed its legislature in 2021 so that only those loyal to Beijing can hold office, ousting pro-democracy lawmakers en masse.
Members of the pro-Beijing camp have spoken out against legal recognition of same-sex couples’ rights, insisting that Hong Kong society only tolerates marriage between a man and a woman.
But last year, LGBTQ rights activists notched another legal victory with the top court affirming housing and inheritance rights for same-sex couples.
Wednesday’s policy document does not mention rights related to housing, inheritance or taxes – topics addressed in Hong Kong’s previous legal cases.
Support for same-sex marriage in Hong Kong has grown over the past decade and hit 60 per cent in 2023, according to a survey conducted jointly by three universities.
More than 30 countries around the world have legalised marriage equality since the Netherlands became the first to do so in 2001.
China is not among them, nor does it have specific laws prohibiting discrimination against LGBTQ people.
