Senior government officials have been talking about human rights in Hong Kong recently, which is hardly surprising - the city's rights situation is on next week's agenda at the United Nations Human Rights Committee in New York.
About two weeks ago, Secretary for Home Affairs Patrick Ho Chi-ping explained why the government opposed a law banning discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. Such legislation 'requires public consensus for effective implementation', he noted. The government's view is that 'at this stage, when the issue is being debated, we should address discriminatory attitudes through public education'.
This is the same conclusion that it reached after a telephone survey in 1995. It decided then to pursue 'non-legislative measures to enhance public understanding'.
The emphasis on education is the same position it took on the issue of racial discrimination - before finally deciding to bite the bullet and enact legislation. The issue of sexual orientation will continue to be debated until the cows come home - even if the government does eventually legislate.
The idea that one should wait until the public loses interest in an issue before taking action is surely novel.
The government's reading of public attitudes towards homosexuality is based largely on a 2004 survey by the Home Affairs Bureau.
