Marie Moloney (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House to take this Bill. I welcome to the Visitors Gallery many of my newfound friends, with whom I have met over the last year or so.
The Yogyakarta Principles postulate that:

Everyone has the right to recognition everywhere as a person before the law. Persons of diverse sexual orientations and gender identities shall enjoy legal capacity in all aspects of life. Each person’s self-defined sexual orientation and gender identity is integral to their personality and is one of the most basic aspects of self-determination, dignity and freedom. No one shall be forced to undergo medical procedures, including sex reassignment surgery, sterilisation or hormonal therapy, as a requirement for legal recognition of their gender identity. No status, such as marriage or parenthood, may be invoked as such to prevent the legal recognition of a person’s gender identity.

That is why we are here today. I want to pay tribute to Dr. Lydia Foy and her legal team and to groups such as TENI, LGBT Noise, Amnesty International and the Equality Authority. I am sorry if I have left anyone out. Many transgender people struggle with social acceptance and it is not an obscure fact that transgender issues are loaded with stigma, prejudice and discrimination. It is crucial that their voices be listened to. "Rights are only won by those who make their voices heard", according to Harvey Milk, a civil and human rights leader.
It is time that Ireland conformed to the European Convention on Human Rights, ECHR, and removed the legal impediments that hinder recognition of our transgender people. Transgender persons need to feel that they are accepted in schools and the workplace and to enjoy basic citizen's rights. Ireland is the only European country that does not have legal gender recognition legislation. The majority of transgender people cannot obtain legal documents under their appropriate name and sex. The small numbers who have legal access to gender recognition still face difficulties in obtaining these important documents. Countries that do not allow legal gender recognition or have highly restrictive laws or regulations for changing name and sex, violate fundamental human rights obligations as stated by the ECHR. Up to now, Ireland has been one of these countries, despite a High Court ruling in 2007 that found the State in breach of its positive obligations under Article 8 of the ECHR. I commend the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Joan Burton, and the Minister of State on bringing forward this legislation. They both put a lot of work into it.
I was very concerned about the request by transgender organisations to have the age at which one can access surgery without parental consent reduced to 16 years. I voiced my concerns at the Oireachtas committee meeting and at subsequent meetings with members of TENI and people who are transgender. However, I now have a very open mind on the matter, having met and spoken at length with members. I have met some lovely people over the last year who just happen to be transgender. It does not matter to me whether or not these people are transgender. They are just very nice and reasonable people who are fighting for the rights of all transgender people who wish to have legal recognition. The Oireachtas committee recommended that the age be reduced to 16 and I supported that at the Oireachtas committee meeting.
I recently received an e-mail from a person and I want to advise the House of what was said in this e-mail. It stated:

The implications of parts of this Bill, not always indicated, are fairly gruesome, horrific and destructive of the human person. Has any thought been given to the future welfare of society as a result of the proposals laid out in this Bill?

The only gruesome thing about this Bill is this e-mail. Does this person really believe that people choose to be born like this, to be born in the wrong body? Do they expect that such people should go through their whole life living a lie to themselves, their families and the community, just so that they do not upset anyone? Do they not realise how hard it is for transgender people to speak out and take the necessary action to live their lives true to themselves? This is not something that suddenly comes on at the age of 15, 20, 30 or 40. It is something they are born with. They instinctively know, from the moment they pick up that first doll instead of a ball, or vice versa, what and who they are. By the age of 16, they are well aware of what they want for their future. If anyone is in doubt, like I used to be, they should spend some time with these wonderful people and they will see for themselves that transgender people are just normal people like everyone else. Transgender people are not any danger to the future welfare of society, as this e-mail suggests.
Regarding forced divorce, we may be caught in a chicken and egg situation. If we put legislation forward now stopping people having to get a divorce, we may be pre-empting the outcome of the forthcoming referendum. However, what can we do for these people? They are in a family situation and they want to stay married. We need to discuss this. Do we wait for the outcome of the referendum and if it is passed by the people of Ireland, will this solve the situation? Will we need to come back and amend this legislation so that these people do not have to go through a divorce situation? I welcome the Minister of State's views on the matter.
We discussed the situation of the under-16s at length at the Oireachtas committee, but like that, we felt that under 16 was very young. We must, however, also take cognisance of the fact that under-16s have many difficulties in school when it comes to participation in sports and so on.
I am getting the "wind up" signal from the Chair. Like Senator Craughwell, I have a lot to say and I would not mind meeting with the Minister of State at some stage. We can have a joint or a cross-party meeting, or however the Minister of State would like to arrange it. There are many issues I would like to discuss personally with him on this matter.