Bid to grant transgender marriage rights defeated in Legco
Legco motion also called for gender recognition law to deal with sex reassignment legal issues
A legislator's motion calling for a law enabling transgender marriages and a gender recognition ordinance was voted down yesterday after the government appealed its rejection.
The 18-29 vote with 11 abstentions came almost six months after a post-surgery transsexual won the right to marry her boyfriend in a landmark case in the Court of First Instance that gave the government a year to decide whether a law was needed.
The various political camps were divided on the matter, reflecting the sensitivity of issues to do with sex in Hong Kong.
The non-binding motion, moved by the legislature's first openly gay lawmaker, Raymond Chan Chi-chuen, called on the government to amend the Marriage Ordinance and the Matrimonial Causes Ordinance so that transgender people could enjoy marriage rights. It also sought a gender recognition ordinance to deal with legal issues arising from sex reassignment.
Secretary for Security Lai Tung-kwok said the government did not have a preconceived stance. "But at the moment, before all the information, research, discussion and a consensus on the issue, it would be best to keep the status quo," he said.
In May, the top court gave a transsexual, known only as W, the right to marry as a woman.
