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UN CHIEF BACKS SCOTTISH GOVERNMENT'S GENDER RECOGNITION REFORMS

Published
33 minutes ago

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Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
New reforms will make it easier for people to apply for a gender recognition
certificate

A top UN official has backed the Scottish government's plan to reform gender
recognition laws.

Ministers want to make it easier for trans people to change their gender.

The UN high commissioner for human rights said the Scottish bill as a
"significant step forward".

Last month, a UN special rapporteur on violence against women and girls, warned
the Scottish bill could endanger women.

Reem Alsalem said it "would potentially open the door for violent males who
identify as men to abuse the process of acquiring a gender certificate and the
rights that are associated with it".

This was disputed by a separate independent UN expert on gender identity, who
said the legislation would bring Scotland in line with international human right
standards.


 * Men could 'abuse' gender reform laws - UN letter


 * What are the plans for gender reforms in Scotland?
 * SNP minister resigns over gender recognition plans



Under the terms of the proposed new laws, people will no longer need a diagnosis
of gender dysphoria to apply for a gender recognition certificate.

The Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill, which is expected to pass next
week, will also reduce the time required for an applicant to live in their
acquired gender.

The Scottish government argues the current process to change a person's legal
gender is too difficult and invasive.

It said there was "no evidence" women and girls would be harmed by the bill.

However critics, including Harry Potter author JK Rowling, have voiced concern
that it could undermine hard-fought for women's rights.


UN INTERVENTION

In a letter published on Friday, Victor Madrigal-Borloz, the UN's independent
expert on protection against violence and discrimination based on sexual
orientation and gender identity, argued the evidence from other countries where
self-identification is standard does not support fears about abuse of the system
by predatory males.



Liz Throssell, spokesperson for the UN high commissioner for human rights,
backed the view of Mr Madrigal-Borloz.

She said: "The key point for the UN Human Rights Office is that everyone - and
that includes trans women - should have access to legal recognition of their
gender identity based on self-identification, through a simple administrative
procedure without requirements such as medical certification, diagnosis,
treatment or surgery."

Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,
Campaigners have raised concerns about the gender recognition reforms

The UN official said the Scottish legislation would be a "significant step
forward" in ensuring Scotland met international recognised standards on human
rights.

She added: "We have not seen any evidence to back the claim that allowing legal
recognition of gender identity based on self-identification hinders efforts to
combat violence against women.

"Around the world, including in the UK, there is clear data highlighting
disproportionate rates of violence, harassment and hate crimes against trans
women.

"This highlights why it is so important to remove - rather than maintain or
create - obstacles for transgender women to access support and services for
survivors of gender-based violence, and to combat harmful narratives about trans
women, that often contribute to the violence and discrimination they face."



SNP MP and lawyer Joanna Cherry challenged claims the legislation would bring
Scotland into line with international human rights standards.

Ms Cherry, who has been critical of the Scottish government's plans, argued
self-identification was not required to comply with international human rights
standards.

Responding to Mr Madrigal-Borloz, she tweeted: "This 'legal opinion' contains no
analysis of the potential conflict between the proposed system of
self-identification and the Equality Act and, in particular, of how self-ID
could undermine the sex based rights of women & same sex attracted people."


'GENUINELY HELD CONCERNS'

In theory, only a small number of people would be directly affected by any
reforms, with the NHS estimating that transgender people make up about 0.5% of
the population.

However, some campaigners are concerned that allowing anyone to "self-identify"
as a woman could impact on the rights women have fought for decades to secure,
and which are themselves enshrined in equalities law.

There are also concerns about access to women-only spaces and services,
including hospital wards and refuges.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has said that some people have "genuinely held
concerns" about the plans but argued that others have latched onto the issue to
spread transphobia.

Mr Madrigal-Borloz, a senior visiting researcher at the Harvard University Law
School Human Rights Program, also has expressed concern about "arbitrary
obstacles" for legally recognising gender identity. He said such measures
contravene human rights obligations, branding them "authoritarian and
anti-democratic".

"United Nations human rights bodies that have spoken on the matter have
constantly found that legal recognition of gender identity through
self-identification is the most efficient and appropriate way to ensure the
enjoyment of human rights, and I am yet to learn of a country in which this is
not the case," Mr Madrigal-Borloz said.

 * University film screening cancelled due to protest
 * Government wins legal case over definition of woman


SAFETY FEARS

Following the UN expert's comments, Scottish Conservative equalities
spokesperson Rachael Hamilton called for the legislative changes to be halted

She said: "This latest intervention is all the more reason to pause this rushed
legislation, not press ahead with it."

The MSP added: "The views of this UN expert do not cancel out the concerns of
the special rapporteur on violence against women and girls, and both positions
need to be carefully considered by the Equalities Committee and MSPs before this
legislation is passed.

"Everyone accepts the need to improve the gender recognition process for trans
people, but this cannot come at the expense of the rights and safety of women
and girls.

"While the aim of self-ID policies are clearly well-intentioned, ultimately a
system of self-declaration without safeguards will always be open to abuse from
predatory men or those acting in bad faith."


MORE ON THIS STORY

 * University film screening cancelled due to protest
   
   1 day ago
   
   


RELATED TOPICS

 * Scottish government
 * United Nations
 * Transgender people





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