Self-identifying transgender children who are 12 and over will be able to change their birth certificate without needing to first undergo sex reassignment surgery, according to new laws just passed by the Queensland Labor government.
Trans and gender-diverse individuals can now also legally change their name at the time they change their formal gender.
For children from 12 to 16, parents or guardians can apply directly to a government registry after certain criteria are met or via a court application. Children must also first receive an assessment from a counsellor but do not need a certificate from a doctor.
Meanwhile, same-sex or gender-diverse parents can register as either “mother” or “father.”
Labor Attorney-General Yvette D’Ath said the changes would support the LGBT+ community, which has faced “discrimination” and “hate.”
The laws received the backing of the Legal Affairs and Safety Committee in February 2023, which is headed by Labor’s Peter Russo, the federal member for Toohey.
The Liberal-National Party, Katter’s Australian Party (KAP), and the independent member for Noosa, Sandy Bolton, opposed the law.
Transgender Movement Criticised
Other critics of the law include Sall Grover, founder of the women-only app Giggle.“It’s a preposterous idea that you can just nominate whatever sex you are legally on your birth certificate whenever you want,” she previously told The Epoch Times.
“Imagine if that male comes out and says, ‘No, I’m female; you have misgendered and committed a hate crime against me,’” she said.
The Queensland government’s move comes after Victorian officials were criticised for allowing a transgender individual—who identified as a woman—to transfer from a male prison to a female one.
The individual also had a history of sexual violence.
Transgenderism Not the Answer to Loneliness: Study
Studies have also indicated that younger people choosing to transition—who already struggle with mental conditions—are no better off after surgery.The study found that 31 percent of transgender-identifying people felt “dissatisfied” or “extremely dissatisfied” with life, while 17 percent said they were “satisfied,” with only one percent feeling “extremely satisfied.”
Further, transgenders were 1,290 percent more likely to describe themselves as “extremely dissatisfied” than “extremely satisfied.”