Recognition Of Transsexuals

ECHR Case No. 45437/20 (June 7, 2023)

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled that Spain violated the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) by denying legal recognition to a transsexual woman who had undergone gender reassignment surgery. The ECHR found that Spain's requirement for a medical diagnosis of gender dysphoria in order to obtain legal recognition was arbitrary and discriminatory.

In 2010, P.S., a transsexual woman who had undergone gender reassignment surgery, applied to change the sex marker on her birth certificate in Spain. Spain required that P.S. obtain a medical diagnosis of gender dysphoria in order to obtain legal recognition. P.S. refused to obtain such a diagnosis, arguing that it was unnecessary and invasive. Spain denied P.S.'s application, and she appealed to the ECHR.

The ECHR held that Spain violated P.S.'s rights under Article 8 of the ECHR, which protects the right to private life and family life. The ECHR found that Spain's requirement for a medical diagnosis of gender dysphoria in order to obtain legal recognition was arbitrary and discriminatory. The ECHR stated that "the requirement to undergo a medical diagnosis of gender dysphoria is not an effective and proportionate means of achieving the legitimate aim of protecting the rights of others." The ECHR also found that Spain's requirement "fails to take into account the individual's autonomy and self-determination in matters of gender identity."

The ECHR ordered Spain to pay compensation to P.S. and to amend its laws to allow transsexual people to obtain legal recognition without a medical diagnosis of gender dysphoria. The ECHR's decision in P.S. v. Spain is a significant victory for the rights of transsexual people in Europe. The decision makes it clear that transsexual people have the right to legal recognition without having to undergo unnecessary and invasive medical procedures. The ECHR's decision in P.S. v. Spain was widely reported on by the media and quickly went viral on social media. The decision has been praised by LGBT rights advocates and criticized by some conservatives.

• China has ordered a psychiatric clinic to pay compensation to a gay man who was given electric shocks in an attempt to make him heterosexual. The man, Yang Teng, said a Beijing court had decreed that the Xinyu Piaoxiang clinic would have to pay him 3,500 yuan ($560; £400). The decision has been hailed as a legal milestone by gay rights bodies. Homosexuality has not been classified as a mental illness in China since 2001 but anti-gay prejudice remains common.
• Homosexuality was decriminalized in China in 1997 and declassified as a mental disorder by the Chinese Society of Psychiatry in 2001. But at the same time, the government has restricted LGBTQ activism. Last month, the government released a new regulation banning any display of “abnormal sexual behaviours” online. And in May, authorities abruptly cancelled a planned LGBTQ conference in central China.
• The Chinese public is becoming more accepting of the country’s LGBTQ community. A 2015 poll by WorkForLGBT, a Chinese advocacy group, found that 77 percent of people believe that workplaces should be “welcoming of all, regardless of sexual orientation.”
• Other countries like Ireland and Belarus lack provisions for trans people altogether. In December 2013, the Netherlands passed a law eliminating hormonal therapy or surgical requirements for legal gender changes, but trans people must still apply for a medical document.