Overview
The Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) and the Gender Research Centre (GRC) of the Hong Kong Institute of Asia-Pacific Studies at The Chinese University of Hong Kong have issued a joint statement (Please refer to Appendix) calling on the Government to launch a public consultation and introduce legislation against discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation, gender identity and intersex status as soon as possible.
The statement was supported by 75 other organisations and academics. These are from a wide range of sectors in Hong Kong society including many large multinational financial institutions; diverse companies in the business sector ranging from one of largest global technology companies to a well known local retailer; a large chamber of commerce and regional trade organisation; local and international law firms and legal organisations; local and international non-governmental organisations working on protecting the human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) people; several religious groups; and several academics working on LGBTI issues. The strong support from different sectors highlights the importance of legislation from several perspectives. For businesses, equality for all their employees helps to ensure that their employees can maximise their performance and the companies maximise their productivity. And from a human rights perspective, protection from discrimination is essential to ensure that LGBTI people are treated with dignity, respect and have a means of redress if they are discriminated against.
Community Business are honoured to be one of the supporting organisation for the joint statement issued by Equal Opportunity Commission and Gender Research Centre of CUHK to urge the government to ensure equal opportunities for LGBTI people in Hong Kong by introducing an anti- discrimination legislation covering sexual orientation, gender identity and intersex status.
