Celebrating 30 YEARS
of Service to Asia's
Gay & Lesbian Community!

Follow UtopiaAsia
on Facebook,
Twitter, and Pinterest

Covid Recovery Discount: to help build your business back up, we are offering a 50% or higher discount off 12 months on any of our promotions !



HONGKONG - Oct 17, 2006

Hong Kong's government on Monday caved in to a challenge against its age of consent laws for gays, effectively lowering the age of consent for homosexuals from 21 to 16 to match laws regarding heterosexuals.

Under former legislation, gay men under 21 were subject to life imprisonment for having sex whereas heterosexual could start having sex five years earlier.

In a short statement, the Security Bureau said it would not seek to reverse the court's decision.

"After considering all the relevant factors, the government decided not to appeal the judicial review," it read.

The courts stated definitively that laws against sodomy infringed on the rights of privacy and equality for homosexual citizens.

“At one stage, societal values dictated that buggery was some form of unnatural act, somehow to be condemned and certainly not condoned. These values have changed in Hong Kong,” Chief Judge Geoffrey Ma said in the judgment.

“I cannot see any justification for either the age limit of 21, or, in particular, for the different treatment of male homosexuals compared with heterosexuals,” Judge Ma said.


go to HOME


UTOPIA PLACE:
Arthur & Paul, Phnom Penh's gay men-only resort
Phnom Pehn's gay men-only boutique hotel, spa, pool and restaurant...

QUNCI VILLAS on the tropical island of Lombak
QUNCI VILLAS, a gay-friendly, gay-managed tropical resort on the heavenly island of Lombak, just next to Bali...


Bangkok Pride 2023

At Bangkok Pride 2023 (photo: Amp Puttipong)

Bangkok Pride 2023

At Bangkok Pride 2023 (photo: Siam Pride)

Bangkok Pride 2023

At Bangkok Pride 2023 (photo: Siam Pride)

Bangkok Pride 2023

At Bangkok Pride 2023 (photo: Siam Pride)

Tokyo Rainbow Pride

At Tokyo Rainbow Pride

Cambodia Pride

Dynamic duo at Cambodia Pride



Special photo exhibition by Mark Leighton!



HOTELS IN ASIA + UTOPIA MEMBER DISCOUNTS + GALLERY
AIDS/HIV INFO + ASIAN NEWS ARCHIVE + SAFER SEX + TRAVEL TIPS
ADVERTISE + ABOUT UTOPIA + EMAIL US

Australia + Bhutan + Cambodia + China (including Hong Kong, Macau, Tibet) + East Timor + India + Indonesia + Japan + Korea + Laos
Malaysia + Mongolia + Myanmar/Burma + Nepal + Philippines + Singapore + Sri Lanka + Taiwan + Thailand + Vietnam

All original text, images and content (c) 1994-2024. Utopia is a Registered Trademark. 乌同邦