Sweden to stop sex change sterilization

[Shana A]

Sweden to stop sex change sterilization

Published: 11 Jan 13 07:18 CET

http://www.thelocal.se/45550/20130111/#.UO_q6Xe54SY

Sweden will no longer sterilize transgendered patients after a law banning the practice entered into force on Thursday, but many who have already undergone a sex change are now seeking damages from the state.

The Stockholm administrative court of appeal recently ruled that the practice of forced sterilizations, which dated back to a 1972 law on sexual identity, was unconstitutional and in violation of the European Convention on Human Rights.

In its December 19th decision, the court said the law did not respect civil liberties as guaranteed by the constitution, and was discriminatory since it solely targeted transgender people.

The law stated that a person who wanted to change sex legally must be infertile. In practice, this lead to transgendered patients being sterilized, as they had to go through with the entire process including gender reassignment surgery in order to have their ID documents changed.

[Henna]

Now that Sweden has changed this injustice, hopefully my country will follow. We are never the first to act on anything, always waiting Sweden or somebody else to be the first and then we can rush in and claim to have been among the most advanced thinking countries...

[gennee]

This is a terrible legacy Sweden leaves. Think of all the people whose lives
were permanently affected.

[Natkat]

its been a long run victory.
I remember going there for the demonstration last yeah in rain and we where very doubting whatever people actually would do anything about it or not.
but my friend who went with me where positive and sure that they would ban the sterilization sooner or later and that it would also infect the other scandinavian countrys who still got forced sterilization.

It did get clear for a long time that they where to ban sterilization but still the goverment had a hard time to swallow it as I understood so this is why it took so long to get out one of my friends in sweden told me so.

I am very happy they have banned the law,
sadly the other scandinavian countrys havent got succes with the same. They have tried in Denmark to ban it as well with without succes.
Hopefully this will come sonner or later.

[Jayr]

Hopefully Canada comes next.

Well my province(Quebec.)

I know some provinces have already changed it but
Quebec is very stubborn.