Anadolu: Turkish court annuls infertility requirement for gender change

Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news agency reports the Constitutional Court ruled to annul a stipulation in the Turkish Civil Code “to be deprived of the ability to reproduce” to allow gender change. This is verbatim translation like all our translations.

Source: Aylin Sırıklı Dal, “Cinsiyet değiştirmede ‘üreme yeteneğinden yoksun olma’ şartı kalktı,” Anadolu Ajansı, Nov. 30, 2017, http://aa.com.tr/tr/turkiye/cinsiyet-degistirmede-ureme-yeteneginden-yoksun-olma-sarti-kalkti/985974

The Constitutional Court decided to annul the legal requirement “to be deprived of the ability to reproduce” to allow gender change.

According to information gathered by Anadolu Agency correspondent, a homosexual opened a case in the Ankara 4th Court of First Instance after being unable to change their identity card due to not having had gender change surgery.

The court petition asked the court to evaluate the claim that the Turkish Civil Code’s Article 40/2 mandating the requirement of gender change surgery to change one’s identity card violated the constitution.

Ankara 4th Court of First Instance found the petition to be serious and took the file to the Constitutional Court.

The General Council of the Constitutional Court discussed the basis of the petition at its meeting. The Council rejected the annulment Turkish Civil Code’s Article 40/2 with a majority of votes stating “the court can make the necessary changes in the population registry after an official health institution confirms the gender change surgery was realized.”  

Annulment of requirement to be deprived of reproduction ability

Another petition on this subject was made by the Edirne 1st Court of First Instance. The court applied to the Constitutional Court to annul the statement “….and to be permanently deprived of the ability to reproduce…” in the second sentence of Turkish Civil Code’s Article 40/1.  

The General Council of the Constitutional Court discussed the basis of the petition and made its decision.

The High Court found the requirement “to be permanently deprived of the ability to reproduce” to allow gender change to be contrary to the Constitution and annulled it with a majority of votes.

The first paragraph of the law used to state, “A person wanting to change their gender may apply to a court in person to request the allowance of gender change. However, in order to be allowed, the person needs to have passed the age of 18 and be unmarried, and document through an official health council’s report from an education and research hospital that they are of transsexual constitution, that it’s necessary to undergo gender change for their psychological health and be permanently deprived of the ability to reproduce.”

 

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