The Government of Hong Kong has recently proposed to enable same-sex couples to register for legal recognition of their same-sex partnerships. Community Business welcomes this step towards a more accepting society as, if this were to pass, same-sex couples will be entitled to certain medical rights that were previously unavailable to them, not limited to obtaining medical information and participating in medical decisions. However, we believe it is still far from the privileges enjoyed by heterosexual unions in Hong Kong.
The proposal dictates that same-sex partnerships need to have already registered their marriage, civil partnership, or union outside of Hong Kong in order to register within, whereas opposite-sex marriages are not subjected to these restrictions. Due to the government not recognising same-sex marriages as “ordinary” marriages, they are not automatically entitled to tax benefits or rights; same-sex couples cannot jointly adopt a child in Hong Kong, only one may be listed as the legal parent. Neither of these concerns has been approached in the proposed framework. While we wish to encourage any progressive step taken towards a more accepting future, we hope that the Hong Kong Government will, in the long-term, continue to ramp up its efforts to build a more inclusive society by guaranteeing true marriage equality for all residents, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity.
At Community Business we believe in inclusion for all, with LGBTQ+ inclusion being one of our core pillars. We strive to continue our role and efforts in promoting workplace inclusivity and are hopeful that same-sex marriages and the LGBTQ+ community will continue to be received warmly in Hong Kong by both the government and citizens.