In a region where no country allows gay or lesbian couples to marry, Hong Kong's Legislative Council on Thursday rejected a motion that could have paved the way to legalizing same-sex unions.
The measure, which would have urged the government to consider granting "equal rights" to same-sex couples, was rejected by 27 votes to 24, with six abstentions, the council said on its website.
"The government keeps avoiding studying policies for homosexual groups," the South China Morning Post, a Hong Kong newspaper, quoted gay lawmaker Raymond Chan, who proposed the motion, as saying.