Union politicians do not want to stand in the way of a change in the transsexual law. However, they reject the self-determination law planned by the traffic light coalition, according to a letter sent to the members of the parliamentary group this week.
“We are open to a pragmatic adjustment of the procedure for changing the name or civil status of transgender people in order to counter the impression of discriminatory rules,” the signatories explain. The plans of the traffic light “in their extreme and sweeping approach” went too far.
Consultation appointments for adults suggested
Even the name “Self-Determination Act” suggests that gender identity must be freely selectable for everyone at all times. In reality, however, for the vast majority of the population, their gender is not in question. “We therefore reject an unconditional, annual possibility of changing the gender entry and the undertaking.”
The legal policy spokesman for the parliamentary group, Günter Krings, the spokeswoman for family policy, Silvia Breher, and the parliamentary group deputies, Andrea Lindholz and Dorothee Bär, propose in the letter that adults have to attend two counseling appointments before changing their gender entry. The previous legal situation should continue to apply to minors.
Justice and family ministries had presented key points in June. According to this, reports on sexual identity or a medical certificate for a change should no longer be required in the future. For children, the legal guardians should submit the declaration of change. Young people from the age of 14 should be able to do this themselves with the consent of their parents.
CDU politician insists on parental rights
Regarding disputed cases for the group of minors from the age of 14, it says: “In order to protect the personal rights of young people, the family court can, in cases in which the legal guardians do not agree, based on the best interests of the child – as in other constellations in family law – replace the decision of the parents at the request of the minor.”
This runs counter to the protection of children and young people and represents a significant interference with the parents’ right to bring up children, said the CDU politician Christoph de Vries. He also accused the government of not taking the “legitimate concerns of lesbian and gay associations and feminist groups” seriously. With good reason, they warned against trans women or biological men entering women’s shelters, women’s saunas or women’s prisons.
