Two Filipino transgenders separately pleaded not guilty on Tuesday, Apr 26, to charges of soliciting for an immoral purpose and for breaching their condition of stay.
The arrests came as an officer as the Consulate’s assistance to nationals section noted that many Filipino transgenders were coming to Hong Kong as tourists and end up working illegally in Wanchai. He said they were possibly being brought to Hong Kong by pimps or handlers who profit from the illegal act.
The two tourists, Mark Anthony Reyes and Junisan Catarungan, who were in police custody, appeared briefly before Magistrate Bina Chainrai at Eastern Court.
No details about their cases and their arrests were read in court, except that they were both arrested in Wanchai last weekend.
Chainrai set the hearing of Catarungan’s case for May 11, and Reyes’ for May 12,
They were both remanded in custody and no bail application was made on their behalf.
A case officer of the NGO Midnight Blue, whose advocacy was the rights of lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders, accompanied relatives and friends of the two defendants to the court.
The officer, Kin, briefed the group about the procedures the two defendants would go through in court.
In a brief chat with The SUN, Kin said LGBTs were treated better now than last year, after a Filipino transgender sought court protection against the alleged inappropriate treatment “she” received from correctional staff.
Kin said Midnight Blue had been receiving positive feedbacks from LGBT detainees about their improved conditions in the detention center.
This was confirmed by Vice Consul Fatima Quintin, who said all Filipino transgenders are now held in Siu Lam Psychiatric Centre, originally a facility for prisoners who require psychiatric observation, treatment, assessment or special psychological care.
Quintin said LGBTs who have undergone a complete sex change are now being attended to by female officers especially during body searches.
Their special needs, such as hormone injections to help make the change successful, are being addressed at a hospital within Siu Lam.
Kin said Midnight Blue knows of only two Filipino transgenders among the LGBTs from various nationalities who are in the detention center. However, other sources said nine Filipino transgenders are currently being held in Hong Kong jails.
