The two transgender women were told they could not enter Hong Kong as immigration officials did not believe they were there to shop and sight see.
The pair were then asked to sign documents concerning their gender and were reportedly asked by officers if they were “cut already”, referring to their gender re-assignment surgery.
The pair refused to sign the documents and returned to Bangkok.
A lawyer representing one of the women, Jonathan Man Ho-Ching said he “could not rule out the possibility of prejudice and discrimination” and said “there was a lack of understanding of different sexes and genders.”
A spokesperson for the Immigration Department told Pink News the tourists were “suspicious” and “failed to satisfy that they were genuine travellers.”
Joanne Leung Wing-yan, Chairwoman of Hong Kong’s Transgender Resource Centre, said that Hong Kong immigration had “no reason to ask them to deny them access.
“I just hope there will be a different kind of treatment and understanding for transgender people” she said.
Hong Kong immigration were criticised in a 2013 airport case in which officers were accused of behaving like animals during a body search and subjecting a transgender visit to a nine-hour ordeal in which she was mocked.
The two transgender women were told they could not enter Hong Kong as immigration officials did not believe they were there to shop and sight see.
The pair were then asked to sign documents concerning their gender and were reportedly asked by officers if they were “cut already”, referring to their gender re-assignment surgery.
The pair refused to sign the documents and returned to Bangkok.
A lawyer representing one of the women, Jonathan Man Ho-Ching said he “could not rule out the possibility of prejudice and discrimination” and said “there was a lack of understanding of different sexes and genders.”
A spokesperson for the Immigration Department told Pink News the tourists were “suspicious” and “failed to satisfy that they were genuine travellers.”
Joanne Leung Wing-yan, Chairwoman of Hong Kong’s Transgender Resource Centre, said that Hong Kong immigration had “no reason to ask them to deny them access.
“I just hope there will be a different kind of treatment and understanding for transgender people” she said.
Hong Kong immigration were criticised in a 2013 airport case in which officers were accused of behaving like animals during a body search and subjecting a transgender visit to a nine-hour ordeal in which she was mocked.
