No jurisdiction in Asia has yet opened legal marriage to same-sex couples. No jurisdiction has yet established a registration system that allows same-sex couples to gain some or all of the rights and responsibilities of marriage by registering. The issue of relationship recognition is lively in Taiwan and Vietnam. Advocates in both Taiwan and China have promoted the recognition of same-sex marriage, in part, as a way to bolster the human rights credentials (and therefore the legitimacy) of Taiwan (in comparison to China) and China (in comparison to the United States). In the region, same-sex relationships get recognition in laws on domestic violence in Hong Kong and Taiwan and in some immigration decisions.
Public wedding ceremonies occur with some regularity now, advancing the cause. South Korean filmmaker Kim Jho Kwang-soo married his partner of nine years in a public event in mid-2013 in front of an audience of thousands, making news headlines. He had produced No Regret, a pioneering gay film in 2008 (Potts 2013c) Over a thousand people attended a ‘mock traditional wedding banquet’ in front of the presidential office in Taipei on September 7, 2013 to promote opening marriage to same-sex couples (Fridae 2013b).
China
The noted sociologist Li Yinhe, who co-authored the 1991 study ‘Their World: A Study of the Male Homosexual Community in China’, submitted draft legislation to the National People’s Congress to extend marriage to same-sex couples in 2003, 2005, 2006 and 2008. Each time the proposal lacked sufficient sponsors to get on the legislative agenda. She restarted her campaign in 2012. Li has argued that Beijing can use the approval of same-sex marriage as a proof to the world of its efforts in protecting human rights (GayStarNews 2012).