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Lars Hamer

The Hong Kong organisers of the Gay Games have rejected calls to cancel the nine-day event scheduled for the autumn after five human rights activists accused the team of “aligning with pro-authoritarian figures persecuting” residents.
The games, to be held in Hong Kong from November 3 to 11, will be the first in Asia.
“We are deeply saddened by unfounded slurs made about the integrity of the Gay Games Hong Kong Team, and totally reject any calls to cancel the Games,” the organisers said on their website on Monday.
“We are dismayed and disappointed that certain people outside Hong Kong are actively working to undermine and sabotage the successful staging of the Games later this year.”

“I don’t really know why they’re making these allegations, the entire leadership team, as we have stated in our public statement, are all volunteers,” Lisa Lam Mun-wai, co-chair of the event, told the Post on Tuesday.
“We have been doing this for the last six years and our sole purpose is to bring an inclusive Games to Hong Kong. That has always been our goal and our purpose. We are not a political organisation.”
The statement followed a commentary published on a sports news website last Wednesday, in which five human rights activists made their call for the event in Hong Kong to be cancelled because “human rights concerns are too great”.
Alex Chan, Clark Leung, Lorraine Pan, Adam Nelson and Samuel Bickett, who called themselves LGBTQ Hong Kong human rights activists, warned in the commentary that the implementation of the national security law meant that anyone who criticised Beijing or Hong Kong and attended the event would risk arrest as soon as they entered the city.
Hong Kong’s Gay Games organisers optimistic about turnout after Covid curbs lifted
“This means that many LGBTQ athletes, including an untold number of LGBTQ Chinese, Taiwanese and Hong Kong dissidents, could not even consider attending the Games,” they said.
The Taiwan Gay Games affiliate had already pulled out of the event citing fears for athletes’ safety, they said.
They also accused the Game’s leadership team of having “aligned themselves with pro-authoritarian figures responsible for widespread persecution against the people of Hong Kong”.
“I would definitely reject that statement,” Lam said. “I think the safety and security of everyone, of course, is paramount. We have been working tirelessly to deliver the event, including ensuring the safety of everyone that participates.”
Gay Games Hong Kong (GGHK) said: “In Asia, there are not as many opportunities for the LGBTQ+ community to come together on such a scale, and participate in an international event that celebrates the spectrum of identities not always accepted in broader society.”
Gay Games ‘will bring out Hong Kong’ thanks to sponsors after no public funding
“This is the reason why our 200+ strong passionate and mission-driven team of volunteers are working so hard to bring a successful Games to Hong Kong.
“We have comprehensive policies and procedures in place to ensure everyone at the games feels safe and protected.
“LGBTQ+ people in Hong Kong, while not having some of the rights that other countries and regions have implemented such as gay marriage, are able to live openly and authentically in public and there are no safety concerns for LGBTQ+ tourists being themselves while visiting the city.
“Hong Kong is ranked one of the safest cities in the world, and hate crimes against someone based on their gender or sexual orientation are rare.”
Lam and GGHK’s director of marketing and public relations, David Gao Zhan-peng, said they had been in communication with many individuals in Taiwan who had expressed interest in taking part in the Games.
Amid vehement opposition to the Gay Games, cool heads must prevail
“It’s a shame that the group in Taiwan feel that they cannot join,” Lam said. “But we still have people from Taiwan showing interest and asking how they can join us as individuals.”
Gao was also one of the leadership team members mentioned by name in the commentary. He was accused of being “an outspoken anti-democracy advocate, concentration camp denialist and an avid supporter of the government’s crackdown on Hongkongers”.
“It’s very important to me that we respect the diversity that’s in the group of volunteers now,” Gao said. “It really doesn’t matter what our personal politics are. And I’ve maintained that from the start. It’s about what we’re coming together to do, which is to create a very successful event. And we need to focus on that.”
The city is co-hosting the 11th edition of the Games with Guadalajara, Mexico, which will hold several sporting events over the same period.
Gay Games a chance for Hong Kong to showcase its tolerant, welcoming side
The activists who criticised GGHK demanded that the entire event be moved to Guadalajara.
Registration for this year’s event has been low. As of May 11, only 433 paid registrants had signed up to participate in Hong Kong, compared with 780 in Guadalajara.
However, Lam said the figure only took into account individual registrations and based on the corporate commitments they had, they expected the total to be about 1,300.
The Games were originally expected to take place in November 2022 but were postponed because of the Covid-19 pandemic.


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Hong Kong sports

Hong Kong Gay Games organisers refuse to cancel event in face of activists’ warning that anyone criticising Beijing or city could be arrested

Hong Kong won the bid to host the 2022 Gay Games after applying in 2017. The event was postponed until 2023 because of the Covid pandemic. Photo: Gay Games Hong Kong

Ambassadors of Gay Games Hong Kong gather for a press conference. Photo: Handout

Gay Games organisers confident more people will sign up for event in Hong Kong amid lifting of Covid curbs, confirm most venues

Lisa Lam, co-chair of the event, says registration was low when it opened last October amid quarantine rules for travellers. Photo: Felix Wong

Lisa Lam, co-chair of the Gay Games in Hong Kong. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Gay Games Hong Kong organisers in front of their float at the Mardi Gras parade for WorldPride in Sydney. Photo: Handout

Gay Games ‘will bring out Hong Kong’ – but no government funding and education ‘a long process’

The Gay Games in Hong Kong was originally scheduled for last year. Photo: Handout

Ambassadors of GGHK gather after Tuesday’s press conference. Photo: Handout

Hong Kong won the bid to hold the 2022 Gay Games after applying in 2017. Photo: Gay Games Hong Kong

News

Hong Kong

Society

Activists accuse organisers of ‘aligning with pro-authoritarian figures persecuting’ residents
‘We are deeply saddened by unfounded slurs made about the integrity of the Gay Games Hong Kong Team,’ coordinators say


Activists accuse organisers of ‘aligning with pro-authoritarian figures persecuting’ residents.


Hong Kong national security law (NSL)

Human rights

Hong Kong Gay Games 2023

LGBTQ

Hong Kong Gay Games organisers refuse to cancel event in face of activists’ warning that anyone criticising Beijing or city could be arrested

Activists accuse organisers of ‘aligning with pro-authoritarian figures persecuting’ residents ‘We are deeply saddened by unfounded slurs made about the integrity of the Gay Games Hong Kong Team,’ coordinators say

Activists accuse organisers of ‘aligning with pro-authoritarian figures persecuting’ residents

‘We are deeply saddened by unfounded slurs made about the integrity of the Gay Games Hong Kong Team,’ coordinators say