Advocates say legal reform for trans Tasmanians doesn’t go far enough

Tasmanian advocates have expressed disappointment that legal reforms introduced to parliament by the Tasmanian government do not go far enough.

Advocates say that the State Government has refused to address the full gamut of inequalities against transgender, intersex, and gender diverse Tasmanians.

They are now calling on Tasmanian opposition parties to address the proposed legislation’s failure to address the forced surgery requirement in addition to the forced divorce requirement for trans and gender diverse folks.

One requirement of marriage equality legislation was that states were obliged to update other laws affected by the change, including the requirement that trans people divorce their spouse before being allowed to amend their gender on official documents.

Most states and territories either had already removed this requirement or have since moved to remove it, with Western Australia and Queensland the most recent.

But around the country trans people are still forced to undergo sterilising surgery in order to change their gender marker.

“Removing the divorce requirement and removing the surgery requirement are linked by the same principles and affect the same people, which is why we want to see them happen at the same time,” Transforming Tasmania spokesperson Martine Delaney said.

“There are other reforms we also believe are well overdue, including banning unnecessary surgery on intersex infants and removing gender markers from birth certificates, none of which need to be delayed.”

Tasmanian Attorney-General Elise Archer has sent trans and gender diverse as well as intersex law reform to the Tasmanian Law Reform Institute for an inquiry, which Delaney says will just prolong the delay and cause further frustration for those affected by the laws.

“The former Anti-Discrimination Commissioner, Robin Banks, conducted a fulsome inquiry three years ago, and yet another will unnecessarily delay justice for a group of Tasmanians who have already waited for too long,” she said.

Delaney had urged the government to take action on forced surgery in June.