Please be advised of the following statement from the Department of Social Protection regarding the establishment of an interdepartmental group – the Gender Recognition Advisory Group. It is now seeking submissions/comments on Gender Recognition prior to the introduction of legislation in Ireland.
Submissions should be sent to grag@welfare.ie by Friday, 17th September 2010.
A copy of the request for submissions can be found here on the Department of Social Protection’s website.
On foot of a High Court ruling that Ireland is in breach of the European Convention on Human Rights in not having a process to legally recognise the acquired gender of transsexual persons, the Government has decided to introduce legislation to comply with the judgement.
To progress this decision, the Minister for Social Protection has established an interdepartmental group – the Gender Recognition Advisory Group – with the following terms of reference:
To advise the Minister for Social Protection on the legislation required to provide for legal recognition of the acquired gender of transsexuals. In particular to propose the heads of a bill to provide for:—
- the establishment of a process for legal recognition of the acquired gender of transsexual persons who have made the transition from one gender to another;
- the establishment of a gender recognition register;
- the granting of entitlement to marry in the legally recognised reassigned gender; and
- any other provisions as may be deemed necessary consequent on the main provisions of the Bill.
To help progress its work, the Group hereby invites comments and proposals on relevant issues from interested parties, and the general public.
Proposals and comments should be submitted by e-mail to the secretary of the Group at: grag@welfare.ie – not later than Friday September 17th 2010.
The Group may invite individuals or representatives of groups to make presentations at a later stage.
Source: Department of Social Protection
Tomboktu
August 17, 2010
Did you look at the outline process the Dept has posted?
Feck sake.
They’re suggesting that a minister might have a role in the process of having one’s gender change legally recognised. I can just see the letters from the person’s local TD of the Minister’s party, tipped off by the Minister’s special adviser the day before the official letter gets issued:
“Dear Jane-John, I pleased to inform you that Minister [Cuiv | His Successor] has approvied your gender reassignment and his officials will be in touch with you shortly to arrange for a new birth certificate to be issued to you. Yours sincerely, A Backbencher, TD“