| Subject: Transsexuals are family outcasts, but find support elsewhere |
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Date Posted: 03:43:11 06/21/06 Wed
南華早報 2006-06-20 CITY CITY1 DONALD ASPREY
Transsexuals are family outcasts, but find support elsewhere
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More than half the population believe sex-change operations are morally wrong in Chinese culture, with 49 per cent referring to transsexuals as human beasts, a Hong Kong University survey has found.
Up to 53 per cent of 856 respondents would accept transsexuals as colleagues, employers, neighbours and friends but only 25.4 per cent would accept them as family members.
However, more than 85 per cent agreed transsexuals should have equal opportunities in education, employment and social services, with 54 per cent in favour of legislation to ban discrimination on the basis of gender identity.
The telephone survey comes as a transsexual policewoman plans to lodge a complaint with the Equal Opportunities Commission over discrimination in the force.
Discrimination, like that towards homosexuality or race, is not at an overt level, but some members of the public appear to be terribly prejudiced, said pollster Mark King, a PhD student at the division of learning, development and diversity in the Faculty of Education at the university.
But despite the negative attitudes towards transgender individuals there is some support for civil rights, Mr King said.
He cited the 43 per cent of respondents who agreed transsexuals should be able to marry in their new sex. Under Hong Kong law it is not possible to change the sex on a birth certificate or for a transsexual to have their adopted sex legally recognised.
Roddy Shaw Kwok-wah, chairman of Civil Rights for Sexual Diversities, urged the government to act. The EOC said two weeks ago they had only ever received five complaints from transsexuals. Five complaints! That means they are not doing their job. These people need protection, said Mr Shaw.
Sam Winter, associate professor at the Faculty of Education, said attitudes towards transsexuals lagged far behind those towards homosexuals. Hong Kong has come a long way to accepting gays. However transgender people still live a very low profile due to ignorance in the community, he said.
Mr King said many transsexuals were driven to suicide through stigmatisation, often by the media.
A Home Affairs Department spokesman said: At present, we have not yet come to a view on whether to legislate against discrimination on the ground of sexual orientation and have no fixed timetable on this issue.
Should transsexuals be protected from discrimination? Send your comments to <a rel=nofollow target=_blank href="http://focus.scmp.com/focusnews/forumindex.html">http://focus.scmp.com/focusnews/forumindex.html</a>
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