Gay activist condemns ‘outrageous’ treatment of LGBT issues in Hong Kong schools

Failure to properly educate teenagers is contributing to a rise in HIV/Aids, claims head of campaign group Rainbow Action

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Tommy Chen and Money Wong Man-lai of Rainbow Action. Photo: Nora Tam

Published: 8:16am, 17 Jun 2017Updated: 8:16am, 17 Jun 2017

Some LGBT students in Hong Kong are still not getting adequate sex education because certain schools continue to represent LGBT sex as “controversial”, a gay rights activist says.

Tommy Chen, executive officer of Rainbow Action, described the situation as “absolutely outrageous”, particularly as members of the LGBT community were being disproportionately affected by HIV/Aids and other sexually transmitted infections.

The number of Hongkongers living with HIV is expected to surge by 35 per cent in the coming four years, with 74 per cent of infections expected to be diagnosed in gay men, according to the latest report by the government’s Advisory Council on Aids.

Schools in Hong Kong stand accused of not teaching children adequately about non-mainstream lifestyles. Photo: Shutterstock

Chen was commenting after the release of the latest youth sexuality survey by the Family Planning Association of Hong Kong this week.

“The problem is LGBT youth are not getting the sex education they need,” he said. “Some schools will still use the word ‘controversial’ when they talk about same-sex relationships.

“I know gay children as young as 16 who are getting infected with HIV, and it is because they are not being taught about safe sex. They think they are safe because they cannot get pregnant. I am not saying you have to tell LGBT teenagers how to have sex, but you should be able to talk about the safety issues.”