PEN Hong Kong Condemns Library Book Purge

PEN Hong Kong, an NGO promoting freedom of expression in the city, on Saturday condemned the decision to remove children’s books covering LGBT issues from public library shelves, and called on the government to return them to public display.

Ten books, which cover LGBT issues, were removed from public display after complaints were lodged by an anti-gay rights group, which said they promote homosexuality.

The books include "And Tango Makes Three", which features two gay penguins, and "The Boy In The Dress" by well-known British comedian David Walliams.

The government’s Leisure and Cultural Services Department confirmed last week that some books have been moved to “closed stacks”, saying this is to make sure they are only read with parental guidance.

PEN Hong Kong said the censorship of the books infringes directly on the right to freedom of expression and on literary expression, which it said Hong Kong is obligated to respect under international and local law.

Its president, Jason Ng, said he was troubled by how authorities had "caved to pressure" from anti-LGBT groups, and seemingly singled-out and marginalised the LGBT community.

“Banning a few titles may seem unimportant at first, but encroachment on rights is a slippery slope that always begins with something that seems minor,” he said. “Worse, I think this is going to send the wrong message to other government departments and even the private sector that it’s OK to discriminate – and that I think has a more far-reaching impact.”

The decision to move the books from public display has also been criticised by the local LGBT rights group Big Love Alliance, which called it unacceptable and tantamount to “appeasing a hate group”.

However, Roger Wong, the convenor of the Family School Sexual Orientation Discrimination Ordinance Concern Group, which successfully managed to persuade officials to remove the books, said the move had been met with approval by many parents he had encountered since.