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On Wednesday, the Hong Kong government released an official document that proposes to establish a registration system for same-sex couples who were married or whose marriages are registered overseas.
This document, released by the Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau, mandates that both partners must be of the same sex and at least 18 years old. Further, one of them must be a Hong Kong resident. Such a framework, if implemented, would confer certain important rights upon same-sex couples. These include rights related to the health of their partner, such as hospital visits, access to medical information and organ donations, as well as the right to handle a partner’s post-death affairs, like applying for a death certificate, claiming the body and arranging funeral matters.
Commenting on this proposed framework, the Bureau stated, “It is essential to establish appropriate registration requirements under an alternative framework that aligns with practical realities and public expectations, while safeguarding registrants’ rights and preventing abuse.”
Importantly, this government proposal comes on the back of a crucial ruling given by the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal in September 2023, in the case of Sham Tsz Kit v. Secretary for Justice. Herein, the Court held that Article 14 of the Hong Kong Bill of Rights obligates the government to create a legal framework to recognize the rights of same sex couples, with a timeline of two years. However, it stopped short of deciding that there is a constitutional right to same-sex marriage.
Since this ruling, human rights groups as well as the UN have called upon the government of Hong Kong to take legislative steps in furtherance of the court’s decision. The Court of Final Appeal itself has also gone ahead to affirm the rights of same-sex couples to public housing and inheritance.
Hong Kong remains one of the few places in Asia to have created a legal framework for same-sex couples, along with other countries like Thailand, Japan and South Korea. Countries in other parts of the world, such as Poland have also recently moved to give legal support to same-sex unions.
This proposal is the first of such steps taken pursuant to the Court’s ruling, and will be discussed in the legislative council of Hong Kong on Thursday.
The post Hong Kong government proposes to legally recognize same-sex couples registered abroad appeared first on JURIST - News.
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This document, released by the Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau, mandates that both partners must be of the same sex and at least 18 years old. Further, one of them must be a Hong Kong resident. Such a framework, if implemented, would confer certain important rights upon same-sex couples. These include rights related to the health of their partner, such as hospital visits, access to medical information and organ donations, as well as the right to handle a partner’s post-death affairs, like applying for a death certificate, claiming the body and arranging funeral matters.
Commenting on this proposed framework, the Bureau stated, “It is essential to establish appropriate registration requirements under an alternative framework that aligns with practical realities and public expectations, while safeguarding registrants’ rights and preventing abuse.”
Importantly, this government proposal comes on the back of a crucial ruling given by the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal in September 2023, in the case of Sham Tsz Kit v. Secretary for Justice. Herein, the Court held that Article 14 of the Hong Kong Bill of Rights obligates the government to create a legal framework to recognize the rights of same sex couples, with a timeline of two years. However, it stopped short of deciding that there is a constitutional right to same-sex marriage.
Since this ruling, human rights groups as well as the UN have called upon the government of Hong Kong to take legislative steps in furtherance of the court’s decision. The Court of Final Appeal itself has also gone ahead to affirm the rights of same-sex couples to public housing and inheritance.
Hong Kong remains one of the few places in Asia to have created a legal framework for same-sex couples, along with other countries like Thailand, Japan and South Korea. Countries in other parts of the world, such as Poland have also recently moved to give legal support to same-sex unions.
This proposal is the first of such steps taken pursuant to the Court’s ruling, and will be discussed in the legislative council of Hong Kong on Thursday.
The post Hong Kong government proposes to legally recognize same-sex couples registered abroad appeared first on JURIST - News.
Continue reading...
Note: We don't have any responsibilities about this news. Its been posted here by Feed Reader and we had no controls and checking on it. And because News posted here will be deleted automatically after 21 days, threads are closed so that no one spend time to post and discuss here. You can always check the source and discuss in their site.