After a 20-year-old man challenged Hong Kong’s laws that say men under 21 who engage in consensual sodomy can be imprisoned for life, a judge ruled that the laws are unconstitutional, calling them a “grave and arbitrary interference with the right of gay men to self-autonomy in the most intimate aspects of their private lives.” Gay activists rejoiced, explaining, “It’s the first time that sexual orientation has been upheld as a protected ground against discrimination in a Hong Kong court.”
Michael Leung, the young man challenging the ruling, responded, “The difference is I can finally have a loving relationship without being scared of (being) thrown into jail for life imprisonment. That would be what we’ve been asking for.” Sixty five men have reportedly been arrested in the past five years in gay sex incidents and 26 have been convicted.