Hong Kong Gay Games: Regina Ip caught in war of words with anti-LGBTQ lawmakers, stresses she has never backed same-sex marriage

Veteran politician Regina Ip hits back at anti-LGBTQ lawmakers calling for cancellation of Gay Games, with group seeking her resignation for officiating at event

‘I, Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee, or the New People’s Party, … have never advocated or supported the legalisation of same-sex marriage,’ she says

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The Hong Kong Gay Games are set to launch on Friday and run until November 11. Photo: Felix Wong

Published: 2:56pm, 2 Nov 2023Updated: 10:32pm, 2 Nov 2023

A war of words between veteran politician Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee and anti-LGBTQ lawmakers has escalated over the Hong Kong Gay Games, with the top government adviser stressing she has never supported the legalisation of same-sex marriage.

The convenor of the top decision-making Executive Council vowed to continue her strong support for the Games after some lawmakers joined critics in calling for the event’s cancellation on national security grounds and Ip’s resignation for agreeing to officiate at the opening ceremony.

Ip on Wednesday evening said on social media that a district council election candidate from her New People’s Party was attacked in public over claims the organisation supported the “legal recognition of same-sex marriage”.

“I, Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee, or the New People’s Party, or any of our candidates [in the district election], have never advocated or supported the legalisation of same-sex marriage,” she said.

The veteran politician cited a 2013 decision from the courts that excluded same-sex unions from Hong Kong’s legal definition of marriage in accordance with the Basic Law, the city’s mini-constitution.