Modernization of Power in Legal and Medical Discourses: The Birth of the (Male) Homosexual in Hong Kong and Its Aftermath

Abstract

The removal of homosexuality from the list of mental disorders and the repeal of restrictive sexual laws deem that Foucault's argument on the discursive control of homosexuality requires refinement to take into consideration the continual modernization and improvement of power. This article examines the multilayered discursive terrain in Hong Kong where homosexuality is created, regulated, and contested in the contemporary era. With the popularization of human rights discourse, sexual dissidents are not simply treated as criminal or pathological; rather, legal and medical discourses have shifted to an increasing reliance on notions of risk to put mechanisms of social regulation in place.

Keywords:

• risk
• HIV/AIDS
• legal reform
• discourse
• Hong Kong

Notes

1. The Commission admitted that they had concentrated their research on male homosexuality and not studied lesbianism in depth (Law Reform Commission, 1983, p. 135). In its report, the Law Reform Commission provided a review of homosexuality in traditional China. The examples cited from classical novels and historical documents only included males, whether they were emperors, eunuchs, or heroes. The Commission's investigation of homosexuality in modern Hong Kong relied on the evidence of the Chinese male prostitutes at the MacLennan Inquiry. Only males were given a voice in the construction of homosexuality (Law Reform Commission of Hong Kong, 1983).

2. Until recently, as pointed out by D. Wong (2004), many pro-gay activists in Hong Kong still rely on the premise that homosexuality is inborn in the struggle for antidiscrimination legislation.

3. In a careful examination of the various provisions of the Crimes Ordinance that concern homosexuality, Chan (2005) argued that behind the veil of the reform was unrelenting societal discrimination and prejudice against homosexuality.

4. The business sector forms the other source of the opposition. Many leaders in the business sector perceive that the antidiscrimination legislation impedes the forces of a free market. Since the Bill of Rights Ordinance prohibits only discrimination by the government, it is, thus, of limited value to the protection of equality in the private sector. The public–private dichotomy, hence, allows the government to wash its hands clean of any responsibility for the state of the private world (Chan, 2005).

5. Another report published in the same year shows the data of AIDS Concern's testing service from 2000 to 2006 (Special Preventive Programme, 2007). In 2000, only 38 blood samples were collected, and none of them tested positive. In 2001, the proportion in test positivity was 0.93 (1 out of 107 samples), whereas in 2006, the proportion increased to 1.64 (10 out of 610 samples). Instead of comparing the figures of 2001 and 2006, the Hong Kong Advisory Council presented the increasing trend from 2002 to 2005, where the prevalence rate had the largest rise from 0.77 to 2.48.

6. In response to the identification of HIV clusters, AIDS Concern issued and circulated a statement on the Internet that urged MSM to go for testing, insist on safe sex, and reduce the number of sex partners. Promoting the use of condoms, raising the awareness of the need to reduce sex partners, and facilitating better access to testing and treatment services remain their three major goals.

7. The LRCHK (1983) suggested that specific offenses of indecent conduct be replaced by a more general offense. The Commission would like to see the new offense applied to conduct in schools so that students are shielded from sexual harassment by peers or teachers, whether in classrooms or lavatories. It was also recommended that attendants at public beaches, swimming pools, and pleasure grounds be empowered to require people who appeared to be about to commit indecent behaviors to leave.