Japan’s Supreme Court has declared that a law mandating transgender individuals in the country to undergo sterilization before undergoing gender-change surgery is in violation of the constitution, as reported by Nikkei newspaper. The sterilization requirement had previously faced condemnation from various international organizations, including the European Court of Human Rights, who labeled it discriminatory and an infringement on human rights.
The Japanese Supreme Court’s grand bench, composed of 15 justices, has ruled that the sterilization requirement is unconstitutional. Notably, the same court had ruled in 2019 that this requirement was constitutional.
While this recent decision was met with approval from rights advocacy groups, the court’s decision to refer a separate clause to a lower court for deliberation has left some disappointed. This particular clause demands that the genitals of individuals seeking a gender change resemble those of the gender they wish to transition into.
An unnamed plaintiff, described as a transgender woman under the age of 50, expressed surprise at the decision, as quoted by The Guardian. Human Rights Watch (HRW) emphasized that the government now has a responsibility to act promptly. Kanae Doi, director of HRW in Japan, stated, “The government is under the obligation to make any laws constitutional, so the government now needs to act quickly to remove the clause.”
The law in Japan currently stipulates that individuals desiring a sex change must provide a diagnosis of gender dysphoria and meet five additional requirements.
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