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Vietnam promotes legal framework to protect transgender people
Vietnam promotes legal framework to protect transgender people
27/9/18
The lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, and queer (LGBTQ) community in Vietnam has faced legal barriers as the law currently only recognises two genders, without any acknowledgement of other gender identifications or of same-sex marriage, said Dinh Thi Thu Thuy, head of the Department of Law under the Ministry of Health.
Addressing a conference in Hanoi on September 26, Thuy noted that Vietnam is home to some 300,000-500,000 transgender people. In the face of oppressive social, cultural, and judicial difficulties, they are considered a vulnerable group.
Transgender people often encounter discrimination and rejection from society and their families, and are given fewer opportunities to access employment and healthcare services, she noted. Even when these institutions are available, the experience can often be isolating and traumatic.
Thuy underlined that sexual abuse and harassment against the transgender community is particularly high, with 23 percent of those interviewed admitting that they had been forced to have sex with others, and another 16 percent having suffered from sexual violence. At the same time, 83 percent had experienced humiliation and degradation for being transgender.
Nguyen Kim Dung, manager of a transgender support programme at the Centre for Supporting Community Development, said that currently, transgender surgery procedures are not widely available to the community due to their excessive costs.
The building of the law on transgender confirmation aims to improve living conditions and health of the community by observing their righta to live by their true gender, she said.
The issuance of the law with regulations, in line with the globally progressive trend, is the wish of not only transgender people, but also relevant service providers, as well as the whole community, said Dung, adding that once the legal corridor for transgender people is built, they will have chance a better chance of living equally with access rights to marriage and happiness in a society that recognises them.
At the conference, participants highlighted just some of the many difficulties, obstacles, and barriers facing the transgender community and discrimination against them.
They also agreed on the need to build a law on gender transitioning and confirmation, while discussing recommendations from the transgender community towards the building of a legal corridor and legal recognition./.
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All comments [ 10 ]
Vietnam has seen a radical change in lesbian, gay, bi-sexual and transgender (LGBT) rights over the last decade as the State has made significant steps to protect rights and equality.
Personally, I think that the recognition or non-recognition of same-sex marriage should be based on very basic studies, credible assessment of impacts on many social and legal aspects, such as personal freedom, compatibility with cultural practices of Vietnamese families and society, and sensitivity and social consequences of the regulations
The country should adopt a legal mechanism to protect their rights in terms of legal personality, property or children of cohabiting couples.
Vietnam passed the revised law, with no clause prohibiting marriage between people of the same sex. The new law allowed same-sex couples to co-habit and have wedding ceremonies, though they are not considered a legal family.
LGBT people now can be more confident to not only present their visibility but also to talk about their rights to access services, such as education, legal and medical services in Vietnam.
The LGBT community is excited for more big changes in the next few years as the new Law on Gender Change is being crafted by the Ministry of Health (MoH) to protect the rights of transgender people.
It’s a work in progress and I am pleased to see the efforts that are going in to considering the different aspects of the bill on protecting the rights of transgender people in healthcare.
Gay marriage is tolerated by the state, though same-sex couples don’t enjoy the same rights as straight people.
Their access to healthcare services including medical intervention, hormonal therapy and psychological support is still limited.
We hope that the study can provide evidence to promote the ratification and implementation of the law of transgender, helping the community access education and employment opportunities and prohibiting violations and discrimination toward transgender people.
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