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August 10, 2021

Why in news?

  • Tamil Nadu government has recently banned sex normalisation surgeries on intersex children except in life-threatening circumstances.
  • This order comes as the second such move made by any State on gender and sexual identity.
  • The Parliament of the island of Malta adopted the Gender Identity, Gender Expression and Sex Characteristics Act in April 2015.

What is gender, sexual identity and sexual orientation?

  • Gender identity is assigned at birth based on the anatomy (male or female sexual organs, both internal and external).
  • Sexual identity is what one sees oneself as, and Sexual orientation is the sex a person is attracted.

What does intersex mean?

  • Intersex refers to people born with physical and biological characteristics that are more diverse than stereotypical definitions of male or female bodies.
  • The intersex condition arises when it is difficult to classify the reproductive organs as male or female.
  • Genetically, the male is invested with XY chromosomes and the female, XX. In intersex, there are at least 40 different variations.
  • In the field of medical genetics, it is believed that gender assignment is not merely the function of the X and Y chromosomes.
  • Rather, hundreds of genes have been identified, mutations or changes in them lead to a ‘different kind of development’, impacting the gender of the foetus.

What is sex-selective surgeries?

  • In Intersex infants, not all biological differences can be detected at the time of birth.
  • When these differences are apparent at birth, parents are eager to resolve the question of the gender of the baby and pick a gender.
  • They are ignorant of the fact that the child will have to pick a sexual identity in the process of growing up.
  • This could lead to physical trauma, emotional turmoil and problems arising out of confusion about identity.

What is the government’s order?

  • Earlier, the Madurai bench of Madras High Court observed that the consent of the parent cannot be considered the consent of the child.
  • The government order specifies that such surgeries can only be performed in case there is a life-threatening situation.
  • It would require permission from the committee that includes paediatric surgeons/urologists, endocrinologists, a social worker/intersex activist and a government representative.

What is the way forward?

  • A great deal of awareness is necessary even for the medical community to recognise the possibilities of gender ambiguity.
  • Parents will have to be counselled well into accepting their children as they are.

 

Source: The Hindu

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