Yo-Ling Chenby Yo-Ling Chen
語言:
English
Photo courtesy of TAPCPR
THIS MORNING AT 10:30 AM, the Taipei High Administrative Court ruled in favor of a transgender man’s administrative appeal case to change his legal gender without providing proof of sexual organ removal surgery. The plaintiff, Nemo (尼莫, pseudonym), was represented by the Taiwan Alliance for Civil Partnership Rights (TAPCPR) and is likely to become the first transgender man in Taiwan to change his legal gender to male without undergoing compulsory sterilization surgery.
Challenging the current Ministry of Interior executive order (內政部97年11月3日內授中戶字第0970066240號令) requiring proof of having surgically removed specified reproductive organs—penis and testicles for transgender women; breasts, uterus, and ovaries for transgender men—and two gender dysphoria diagnosis certificates from separate psychiatrists in order to legally change one’s gender, Nemo went to the Xinyi Household Registration Office in June of 2022 to apply for a legal gender change without providing proof of surgery. Xinyi Household Registration Office rejected his initial application, which Nemo then appealed; his appeal was rejected in July of 2022. In early December of 2022, Nemo took his administrative appeal case to the Taipei High Administrative Court.
Throughout Nemo’s administrative appeal process, TAPCPR has emphasized that Nemo is medically unable to fulfill the Ministry of Interior’s surgery requirement. Due to a pre-existing medical issue, Nemo has already undergone a major surgery that prevents him from undergoing additional major surgical procedures. As part of his appeal, Nemo initially submitted one gender dysphoria psychiatric diagnosis certificate and his prescription for gender affirming hormone therapy to the court, and also provided an oral testimony explaining his situation. The court requested that Nemo undergo a psychiatric evaluation as part of his appeal, but due to medical issues, Nemo was unable to comply with this request. Ultimately, Nemo submitted a second gender dysphoria diagnosis certificate for the court’s consideration.
TAPCPR lawyer Xie Meng-Zhao (謝孟釗) shared that during this morning’s ruling, the presiding judge cited the Supreme Administrative Court’s ruling against compulsory surgery last September to emphasize that transgender people who desire to change their legal gender must provide ample evidence of their gender identity, as well as engender a high degree of confidence that they would not change their legal gender again. TAPCPR lawyers have argued that the two gender dysphoria diagnosis certificates, as well as various videos and other testimonies provided throughout the appeal process, satisfy this uncodified requirement. In the Judicial Yuan’s press release, it was stated that Nemo’s gender dysphoria diagnosis certificates, in combination with his use of hormones, was sufficient evidence of the need to change his gender marker.
As other administrative appeal cases against compulsory surgery proceed, it remains to be seen what specific legal precedence will be established to replace the current surgery requirement for legal gender change. In the case of Taiwan’s first transgender women to change her legal gender without providing proof of surgery in fall of 2021, plaintiff Xiao E was required to submit two psychiatric evaluations as part of her administrative appeal. The success of Nemo’s administrative appeal case without providing psychiatric evaluations and only providing gender dysphoria diagnosis certificates is significant insofar as the former is much more expensive and time-intensive than the latter.
The Taipei High Administrative Court will issue formal written judgments to both the plaintiff and defendant in the coming weeks. The Xinyi Household Registration Office can submit an appeal to the Supreme Administrative Court within twenty days upon receiving the written judgment. It is unlikely that the Xinyi Household Registration Office will appeal the Taipei High Administrative Court’s decision given the growing legal consensus against compulsory surgery. This means that in the next month or two, Nemo is expected to become the first transgender man in Taiwan to change his legal gender without providing proof of surgery.
TAPCPR lawyer Victoria Hsiu-wen Hsu stated in this morning’s press release that “Today we have good reason to celebrate with champagne, its thousands of bubbles representing our tears and exclamations of joy. Because of the Ministry of the Interior’s outdated compulsory surgery requirement, 90% of transgender people in Taiwan have not been able to change their legal gender markers, and as a result, they are often discriminated against, suffering wherever they go, and often encounter offensive remarks in their daily lives. We will continue doing our work until the gender identities of all peoples are equally respected.”