—JULY 1980 HIGH GEAR PAGE 19
Gay life in Hong Kong
by Daniel Tsang
S: We tend to be less active because we are less able to support ourselves financially. Thus we restrict our activities to a small group of friends. What disappoints me in particular is that most gays here, especially if they are in respectable positions --
HONGKONG (IGNA) The first gay liberation magazine in Chinese has appeared here. Entitled Pink Triangle, the 12-page periodical came out in February. The editor was identified only as "Sam" because the political situation facing gays in Hong-professors, doctors, government Kong, where homosexual relaofficials are paranoid about tions can lead to life imprisonbeing publicly identified as gay. ment, necessitates that "Sam's" There is a great deal of insecurwork remain largely under-ity. For example, a rather highground.
On April 6 the major Englishlanguage newspaper in HongKo.ng. The South China Morning Post, described Pink Triangle as "a new underground newspaper now in wide circulation among the 'gay' underground." It stated that the appearance of the periodical is a sign that homosexuals are beginning to resist the traditional view that homosexual ity is depraved.
The same issue of The South China Morning Post also included several sensationalistic features on the gay scene in Hong Kong.
..
Since the start of the gay publication, its editor and a lesbian have been interviewed by a weekly tabloid aimed at teenagers, the Chinese-language Modern Teens Post.
level television performer was suspended because the person was thought to be gay.
N: I agree with her on this. The higher the social status, the more secretive and isolated a person becomes.
Q: Are you satisfied with your sex life?
N: I am bisexual, but I prefer men. I do not necessarily get satisfaction only from sex with men -I also have a lot of warm feelings for men with whom ! relate only emotionally. Before I had sex with a man, I lived with a woman. The lack of satisfaction from sex with a woman led me to think of having sex with a man. This doesn't mean, however, that I am not attracted to women.
S: I cannot accept sex with men. Basically I get more satisfaction from emotional exchang-
A translation of the interview es than from sex. follows:
Place: An underground bookpresent hostile to homosexual-
store in Hong Kong. Date: March 21, 1980 Persons Interviewed: Mr. N and Miss S
Q: Could you tell us about your background?
N: I was a foreign student in America and I got back half a year ago to organize gay activities here.
S: I work for a cultural organization here. Previously I studied
in the U.S.
Q: Could you tell us about your activities here?
N: I think it is more fortunate to be a gay man, even though our circle of activities is restricted. As men, we are more socially active in this society. We can frequent gay bars, discos, and similar places. We are also financially more able to afford such activities.
Q: Hong Kong society is at ity. Why?
N: I don't think we're rejected only by Hong Kong society. Chinese society in general refuses to acknowledge our existence. To
me, that is the ostrich syndrome. There are many historical accounts of homosexuality in China. Why can't we recognize its existence? We often pride ourselves as a great people, but we're not great at all. Using the most conservative figure, at least 4% of Hong Kong is gay, or 200,000. Our society simply doesn't have a good way of dealing with this issue, thereby causing many tragedies.
S: Oppression of lesbians in this society is greater. The status
of women in traditional Chinese society has been lowlet alone that of lesbians! Women's expectations are, in fact, minimal. We only hope to belong to an organization of our own. Up to now we have been unorganized. (ankN
Q: What do you plan to do under present conditions?
N: I would like to open a gay movement bookstore. We're lucky in that we have already drawn some attention the "Focus" program on TV and interviews by students from both Hong Kong University and Chinese University of Hong Kong. But at this stage it may not be a good idea to be too open, since the government may take action against us. But perhaps we'll have a march.
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