[Greens-Media] MEDIA RELEASE: ACT Greens celebrate move ‘Beyond the Binary’

[Jaques, Alison]

Please find attached media release from ACT Greens Member for Molonglo, Shane Rattenbury MLA.


MEDIA RELEASE
Shane Rattenbury MLA, ACT Greens Member for Molonglo

20 March 2014

ACT Greens celebrate move ‘Beyond the Binary’

ACT Greens Member for Molonglo, Shane Rattenbury, today supported legislation to improve legal recognition of transgender and intersex people in the ACT.

“The ACT Greens are proud to support these pioneering changes which remove historical discrimination against sex and gender diverse people,” said Mr Rattenbury.

“The Greens believe that freedom of sexual orientation and gender identity are fundamental human rights and that people have the right to assume their self-identified gender. Discrimination on the basis of sexuality or gender identity is unacceptable.

“The laws remove the requirement for individuals to have reassignment surgery prior to changing the sex on their birth certificate; this was an expensive, invasive and discriminatory requirement.

“Complementary changes will also allow transgender and intersex people to show their sex as “X” if appropriate. This is a very meaningful change for many people in the community and an important step in the proper recognition of diverse gender identities.

“The improvements stem from a 2012 ACT Law Reform Advisory Council (LRAC) report called “Beyond the Binary”, which I advocated for in the last Assembly.

“Many gender diverse people are in the situation of having birth certificates which show their sex as different from the way they identify. Before these changes they were left without a clear legal mechanism to amend errors made in the recording of their sex at birth.

“It should go without saying that people of different gender identities and different sexualities should be treated just the same as anyone else. Unfortunately that is not yet the case and we need continued advocacy from the community and policy and political pioneers until this is achieved.

“I congratulate advocates from the gender diverse community who have worked tirelessly on this issue, and I look forward to working with them in the future to further advance this cause,” said Mr Rattenbury.



Statement ends


Ali Jaques | Media Adviser to Shane Rattenbury MLA
ACT Greens Member for Molonglo
Minister for Territory and Municipal Services; Corrections; Housing;
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs; and Ageing.

t:  (02) 6205 3897 | m:  0481 035 764| alison.jaques at act.gov.au |

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