Wellington: New Zealand advanced with his plan to make it easier to change a person’s sex to their birth certificate on Wednesday as the law moved through the parliament with the support of all political parties.
The self identification bill was introduced to ensure New Zealand had the best process for transgender, non-binary and intersex to officially recognize their gender, the government said in a statement, after the bill had a second reading in parliament on Wednesday.
“There is a strong and sustainable public interest in this bill and I am happy to see it moving towards being law.
I hope to hear from all those who are interested in the proposal,” said Minister of Home Affairs Jan Tinetti in a statement.
The bill will now return to the parliamentary election committee and receive public feedback.
The legal procedure to change a person’s sex to a birth certificate in New Zealand is long and complex.
The new law will facilitate the update without a convoluted court process.
The bill has the first hearing in 2019, but has made a little progress since then.
Self identification was introduced to the bill by the Select Committee in 2018 in response to the petition received.
Tinetti has proposed improvements to the self-identification process.
“As a Minister of Home Affairs he got rid of me to find out the information provided on the birth certificate could be a cause of stress like that for many people.
It is important for us to get this with the right to all New Zealand people,” Tinetti said.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern last year appointed the most inclusive parliament of the country, with some of the colors, members of the Pelangi community and a large number of women.
The government also introduced last month’s legislation that the practice of criminals was intended to change a person’s sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression, known as LGBT conversion therapy.