A lawmaker's proposal to amend a law so that same-sex couples married legally overseas can reclaim the ashes of their deceased partner from a columbaria (a place where urns are stored) has met with criticism from Hong Kong diocese.

Cyd Ho Sau-lan, a lawmaker from the Labour Party, proposed an amendment to the Private Columbaria Bill on July 6 as the bill only allows "relatives" to retrieve ashes from a columbaria.

Ho has suggested an amendment that would allow same-sex spouses married outside Hong Kong to be included in the definition "relative."

"It is already very painful to be widowed. Why should anti-gay people suppress the right of a same-sex spouse to handle his or her partner's ashes? Why do anti-gays have such hatred?" Ho posted on Facebook July 6.

Both the The Hong Kong Catholic Diocese and the Society for Truth and Light promptly spoke out against the lawmaker’s proposal, seeing it as a move towards same-sex marriage in the city.

“The issue itself reflects how discussions on LGBT issues have turned irrational," a church worker told UCA news.