Our Love Is No Different, Says Triumphant Couple

Civil servant Leung Chun-kwong who won a landmark gay right case on Thursday has thanked society for its support, and for understanding that the love between himself and his husband is “no different than other love”.

“They understand that our love is no different than other love, that’s why we come to the result today. Love wins,” he said.

The Court of Final Appeal ruled that Leung’s husband, Scott Adams, should enjoy the same spousal benefits offered to the partners of his heterosexual colleagues in the government, as well as the option of joint tax assessment.

Speaking after the verdict, Leung, a senior immigration officer, told reporters that the legal process had lasted more than four years, and it had been a stressful time for the couple and their families, but they had carried on because they believed it was the right thing to do.

He said their victory is just “a small step for the equality in Hong Kong”, and urged the government to review its policies and legislation to remove anything discriminatory.

“We think that as a small citizen, we shouldn’t be going through such a process to fight for such basic family rights,” he said.

“We urge the government to review all their policies and legislation to see if there’s any other discriminatory nature to try and rectify it before any other citizens have to come up and go through the same legal process,” Leung added.

Adams said such a review would have to include the issue of same-sex marriage.

“Ultimately if the government needs to review all of its policies, then marriage equality should be one of them,” he said.

The couple met the media a few hours after the ruling was handed down, with Adams saying he felt “excited, very happy, and very blessed”.