"Transgender Individuals Can Change ID Without Gender Reassignment Surgery"…Hong Kong Court Ruling

"Risky Gender Reassignment Surgery, Gender Change Conditions Not Met"

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunju Park] Hong Kong's highest court has ruled that transgender individuals should be able to change the gender on their government-issued identity cards without undergoing sex reassignment surgery.

On the 6th (local time), according to the Washington Post and others, the Court of Final Appeal, Hong Kong's highest court, stated, "The government's policy that one must undergo sex reassignment surgery to change the gender on their identity card is unconstitutional and imposes an unacceptable harsh burden," adding, "This is disproportionate as it infringes on two individuals' rights to gender identity and bodily integrity."

The court cited cases from other jurisdictions that allow legal gender changes without proof of sex reassignment surgery, ruling that such surgery should not be a prerequisite for changing gender on identity cards.

Previously, in 2019, two transgender activists, Henry Edward Tze and another, filed a lawsuit after the Hong Kong government refused to change the gender on their identity cards because they had not undergone sex reassignment surgery. They had already changed their gender on their British passports.

The two demanded that sex reassignment surgery should not be a prerequisite for changing gender on identity cards, arguing that surgeries such as removal of the uterus and ovaries and removal and reconstruction of external genitalia are risky and can cause complications.

Transgender activist Henry Edward Tz was smiling brightly on the 6th in front of the Court of Final Appeal, the highest court in Hong Kong, holding a flag symbolizing transgender people and a paper with the word "Victory."
[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

Activist Tze welcomed the ruling, saying, "Many transgender people have been waiting for a final victory for years." He added, "Now I will have a male identity card, and it will be much easier to access gender-segregated spaces," and "I will no longer be insulted or questioned because of an identity card that does not match who I am."

AP News reported, "Since many transgender people consider sex reassignment surgery unnecessary and risky, this ruling by the Hong Kong court will have a broad impact on the LGBTQ community."