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WORLD NEWS Saturday 2 February 2019

Hong Kong court denies male status to 3 transgender men

By VIOLET LAW dress the discrimination required sterilization as part
HONG KONG (AP) — Hong transgender people in of a legal gender change,
Kong's High Court refused Hong Kong face." and it ordered them to end
on Friday to allow three "No one should be forced the practice.
transgender men to be to undergo gender affirm- Maria Sjodin, deputy ex-
recognized as males on ing surgery in order to have ecutive director of Out-
their official identity cards their gender legally recog- Right Action International,
because they have not nized," Man-kei Tam, direc- which monitors LGBT rights
undergone full sex-change tor of Amnesty International issues worldwide, said she
operations. Hong Kong, said in a state- was unsure if all 22 of those
The ruling was seen as a ment. countries have fully imple-
blow to the fledgling LGBT Friday's decision follows a mented the court's order.
movement in the semiau- ruling last week by Japan's In Hong Kong, the judg-
tonomous Chinese city of Supreme Court uphold- ment seemed at odds with
7.4 million people, which is ing a law that effectively a 2013 ruling that allowed a
preparing to host the 2022 requires transgender peo- transgender woman known
Gay Games. ple to be sterilized before as W to have her gender
The three, identified as Hen- Transgender man, Henry Tse displays a banner outside a local they can have their gen- changed to female on her
ry Tse, Q and R, are shown court in Hong Kong Friday, Feb. 1, 2019. der changed on official identity card. W had suc-
on their ID cards as hav- Associated Press documents. That ruling was cessfully sued in the city's
ing been born female, but widely denounced by hu- highest legal body, the
are undergoing hormone our Rights NOW!" Like many Asian societies, man rights and LGBT activ- Court of Final Appeal, for
therapy. A full sex change In his ruling, Judge Thomas Hong Kong has become ists and may spark further her right to marry her boy-
would require the removal Au wrote that "the change more open about gender legal action. friend. Following that case,
of female sexual organs, of gender entry stated in issues, although the legal Japan is one of many the city's Equal Opportu-
making them sterile. the ID card does not only system is sometimes slow to countries with a sterilization nities Commission recom-
Appearing in court, Tse un- concern the private right of follow. requirement. In 2017, the mended that the govern-
furled a banner that read, the transgender person but Amnesty International European Court of Human ment drop the requirement
"Forced Sterilization is cruel also the wider public inter- called the judgment "a Rights said 22 of the coun- for complete sex reassign-
and inhumane. Recognize est." missed opportunity to ad- tries under its jurisdiction still ment. q
Former South Korean governor convicted of sexual abuse

By KIM TONG-HYUNG But he stepped down as in their attempts to seek ac-
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — governor of South Chun- countability.
A South Korean appeals gcheong province last Ahn is the first prominent
court sentenced a former March amid public anger politician to be jailed af-
provincial governor to 3½ over allegations of sexual ter being accused in the
years in prison on Friday on abuse raised by his then- country's growing #MeToo
charges of sexually abusing secretary, Kim Ji-eun. Kim movement against sexual
his secretary, in the highest said in a television interview misconduct, which has led
profile conviction yet from that Ahn had raped her to indictments and con-
investigations triggered several times since June victions of powerful men
by the country's growing 2017 and that she couldn't in arts, sports and govern-
#MeToo movement. say no because of how ment after victims came
A Seoul High Court official powerful he was. forward.
said Ahn Hee-jung was A lower court acquitted Last week, the Seoul Cen-
found guilty on most counts Ahn in August, citing a lack tral District Court sentenced
after being accused of of evidence proving that Ahn Hee-jung, center, a former governor of South Chungcheong former senior prosecutor
molestation, sexual assault he abused his authority to province, arrives at the Seoul High Court in Seoul, South Korea, Ahn Tae-geun to two years
and abuse of authority. The force his secretary to have Friday, Feb. 1, 2019. in prison for abusing his au-
official did not want to be sex. Associated Press thority by transferring junior
named, citing office rules. Ahn, who said the sex was colleague Seo Ji-hyeon to
Ahn, 54, had been consid- consensual, can appeal hap news agency, and through her lawyer, Kim an unfavorable provincial
ered a possible presidential the conviction to the Su- was later escorted in hand- thanked the court for see- job in 2015 after she de-
candidate, and was a run- preme Court. cuffs by court officials to a ing "the truth, just the way it manded that he apologize
ner-up to current President After Friday's verdict was bus that took him to a cor- is," and said she hopes the for allegedly groping her at
Moon Jae-in in the ruling announced, Ahn told the rection center in southern verdict will give strength a funeral. Seo went public
party's presidential primary judge that "I have nothing Seoul. to other victims of sexual with her allegations in Jan-
in April 2017. to say," according to Yon- In a statement released abuse who have struggled uary last year.q