Hong Kong Court sided with transgender people
2023.02.06 06:36
Hong Kong Court sided with transgender people
By Tiffany Smith
Budrigannews.com – On Monday, the highest court in Hong Kong decided that the policy of requiring transgender people to have full sex reassignment surgery before they can change the gender on their ID cards is illegal and against their rights.
The Commissioner of Registration’s decision to deny their requests to change their gender on their Hong Kong Identity Cards was overturned by the Court of Final Appeal, which ruled in favor of the appeals filed by transgender activists Henry Tse and another appellant identified as “Q.”
The judges stated in their judgment that “the policy’s consequence is to place persons like the appellants in the dilemma of having to choose whether to suffer regular violations of their privacy rights or to undergo highly invasive and medically unnecessary surgery, infringing their right to bodily integrity.” This is a violation of the appellants’ right to bodily integrity.
It is evident that this does not represent a reasonable balance. The Policy places an unreasonable burden on the impacted individuals.
The registrar still required Tse and Q to perform a comprehensive sex reassignment surgery, despite the fact that Tse and Q argued that the procedure was unnecessary, unwelcome, and extremely invasive. Both Tse and Q underwent extensive medical and surgical treatments, including hormonal treatment and breast removal.
Tse was pleased with the decision because it would resolve the “burning issues” he had with having the wrong ID and called for a gender recognition law.
“The outcome of today is delayed justice—a Pyrrhic victory. Tse issued a statement stating that “this case should never have happened.”
“With my partners at Transgender Equality Hong Kong, I will continue to put in a lot of effort to sow the seeds of the transgender rights movement. We will, I believe, be successful one day and warmly welcome the rainbow.
In 1997, Hong Kong, a British colony, was returned to Chinese rule under a “one country, two systems” plan designed to guarantee the country’s freedoms and independence for 50 years.
China refutes the widespread claim that Beijing’s Communist Party rulers are slowly interfering in the city’s affairs.
