Japan court awards damages to victims of forced sterilisation for first time
GuardianNov 24, 2021
Japan: Top Court Finds Sterilization Rule for Gender Change Unconstitutional
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Image copyright: Wikimedia Commons
The Facts
Japan's Supreme Court has ruled a clause requiring people to undergo sterilization if they desire to legally change their gender unconstitutional.
The ruling applies only to the portion of a law, which took effect in 2004, that relates to sterilization. It doesn't address the constitutionality of requiring surgery itself to legally change one's gender.
The Spin
Progressive narrative
While this landmark verdict is a start, requiring any kind of expensive or invasive surgeries for a legal change of gender should be rendered unconstitutional. There is a lot of work left to be done to protect LGBTQ+ rights in Japan.
Conservative narrative
Traditional, paternalistic family values are important in Japan, and requiring some level of surgery to ensure people's certainty in gender transitioning protects traditional elements of the nation's culture. Moreover, allowing those born with male reproductive organs to transition to the female gender without surgery could endanger the safety of women's spaces.
