ACT moves to ban deferrable intersex surgery

In a national first a bill to ban deferrable surgeries on intersex children has been tabled in the ACT Legislative Assembly. Here’s what it means.

Intersex advocate Mimi Hall has welcomed a bill to ban unnecessary surgeries on intersex children. Picture: Julia Kanapathippillai

Intersex advocate Mimi Hall says receiving surgeries as a child to alter sex characteristic variations left her with “physical and emotional scars”.

“Knowing that my body and my identity was surgically, hormonally, and socially pushed into a box of being a woman has been extremely hard for me to wrap my head around,” she said.

“It’s been very challenging to know that surgery happened on my body without consent.”

Ms Hall has welcomed a bill tabled at the ACT Legislative Assembly which aims to ban non-essential surgery on intersex children.

Intersex advocate Mimi Hall says receiving surgery as a child to alter her sex characteristics have left her with physical and emotional scars. Picture: Julia Kanapathippillai

The bill, tabled by Chief Minister Andrew Barr on Wednesday, is the first of its kind in Australia, and is expected to pass when voted on.

The bill aims to ban non-essential surgery on intersex children which aims to alter their bodies to fit into a gender binary.

Intersex refers to people who are born with sex characteristics which differ from what is typical for male and female.

Many children with intersex conditions have had surgeries to alter the appearance of their genitalia.

Intersex advocates have criticised such surgery on children as being unnecessary and potentially harmful.

“A huge proportion of intersex surgeries end up in sterilisation, and remove healthy and functioning reproductive organs,” Ms Hall said.

“I think taking away the potential for having biological children is hugely damaging.”

ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr tabled a bill to ban unnecessary surgeries on intersex children. Picture: Julia Kanapathippillai

Mr Barr said if passed the bill would provide more support to intersex people and their families.

“Parents and families of intersex children have not all received the support and help that they needed to navigate decisions and treatment pathways for their child,” he said.

The bill has been praised by various organisations representing the needs of intersex people, including Intersex Human Rights Australia, Equality Australia, and ACT based advocacy group A Gender Agender.

A Gender Agenda executive director Vik Fraser said the organisation was proud to have worked with the ACT Government to draft the bill.

“Embedding the medical treatment of children born with innate variations of sex characteristics into a human rights framework is a huge, positive step forward,” Dr Fraser said.

“Individuals should have the right to informed medical consent, and allowing deferrable and irreversible surgery on children and infants goes against this framework, with the potential for far-reaching implications.”

Equality Australia chief executive Anna Brown has called on other state and territory governments to introduce similar bills. Picture: Julia Kanapathippillai

Equality Australia chief executive Anna Brown called on other state and territory governments to introduce similar bills.

“This law, assuming it passes, will ensure more intersex people can decide what happens to their own bodies,” she said.

“(It will ensure) they are not left with the physical and psychological scars of unnecessary medical decisions made about them without their say.”

Ms Hall said societal pressures for people to fit into the male and female binary had caused well-intentioned parents and doctors to make harmful decisions.

“It would have been great for society to have changed and understand how harmful these practices are,” she said.

“Unfortunately that's not the case, so policy has to be put in place to stop these harmful practices.

“Hopefully society will catch up.”