Gender optional on birth certificates

Tasmania is set to become the first Australian state or territory to make the inclusion of a child’s sex on a birth certificate optional. The Lower House voted narrowly in favour of the reforms yesterday with Liberal Speaker Sue Hickey siding with Labor and Greens to get the reform over the line.

In the ACT, gender on birth certificates is categorised as "M", "F'' or "X".

The landmark reforms still have to pass through the Tasmanian Upper House to become law and a child’s sex would still be recorded on medical records.

Passports were changed in 2011 to allow people to state if they identify as male, female or other.

The transgender community was overjoyed at the result. Transforming Tasmania member Martine Delaney said the amendments were a massive step in a 14-year battle. “It means the trans and gender-diverse people in Tasmania will be on a level playing field when it comes to everyday life,” she said.

Tasmania was the last jurisdiction to decriminalise homosexuality and cross-dressing.

12 comments

It just beggars belief.

+1

An ego trip for the lunar Greens, with Labor competing for the far left fringe.

the greens should go to another planet and stuff it up like they are trying to do with ours

As a frequent overseas traveller I just wonder about the difficulties these people will face with passports like that. Every where I went in the last 12 months I filled in forms with no provision for gender neutral boxes.

A while ago a mate from my old country visited me and the police told him his driver's licence was not valid as there was no expiry date on it. The licence was in the English language but it is issued for life unless you do something wrong and it is then cancelled and you have to start from scratch to get another one.

Have a feeling passports with gender neutral provisions might be regarded the same way overseas. I found there is enough trouble with immigration in foreign parts without throwing that clanger into the mix.

"...with Liberal Speaker Sue Hickey siding with Labor and Greens to get the reform over the line". That says it all - all 3 major parties need to be thrown into the rubbish bin!

A load of tripe. What next it's to interfere with kids brains. Like safe schools program.

like that bloody teacher in south australia who thinks it is her right to advise students against liberals.

yes , more garbage like the crap from the Latrobe Univiesity Roz Ward . the Victorian  Labor supporterss will vote Andrews in again   ....they are so dumb 


Making this "optional" is senseless to me..it should be right across the board or not at all. I don't think people realise the empty space on their passport or b/certificates can cause them difficulties in a myriad of situations.

If on the other hand..it's the "norm" for the entire country ..outsiders may be more accepting.

It is necessary to have the X category for intersex babies who are born with a combination of male and female sexual organs. These days such children do not have a gender imposed on them, they may choose to live as a boy or girl when old enough to make that decision or they may choose to remain both male and female (which is what they in fact are). Transgender people should have the right to change documents when they change gender but that would happen well after birth. I think it would be ideal to have categories girl/boy/X. Nobody is going to be hurt by such change in legislation but some people will be made happier and experience less complication when they need to produce their birth certificate for whatever reason.

nothing wrong with either Male , Female or Other   why just symbols   eg M , F, X that could mean anything   so stupid   what does X supposed to mean ? no need for abbreviations 

I agree “other” does sound better than “X”. 

There are also people with different chromosomes which I forgot to mention. Females are XX, males are XY, but some people have a double X eg XXY and some have a double Y eg XYY. I don’t know how that affects their experience of gender but it probably does have some sort of impact.

A persons gender at birth is important identification, regardless of what they (change to or change back to) later on.

It is absolute nonsense to have incomplete records because its trendy for parents to do so. The only gender neutral classification should be decided by the doctors at the hospital.

Do we all have to behave like we are trans gender people, so nobody will know who the transgender people are, while all the other people with medical defects at birth, just have to shut up and live with their own problems.

In the 1960's they legalised homosexuality in the UK. I decided to emigrate before they made it compulsory. HAHA

There are males and there are females - DEAL - and stop kowtowing to minorities!

According to the latest Australian Sex Survey, there are 33 known genders in Oz.To be fair to everyone, there should be 33 boxes.

Microchip all and then there will not be any use for birth certificates.

what is this country coming to!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

12 comments



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