Australia says it will offer 3 gender options on passports: male, female and indeterminate

[villager]

Source: AP

By ROD McGUIRK Associated Press

CANBERRA, Australia—Australian passports will now have three gender options—male, female and indeterminate—under new guidelines to remove discrimination against transgender people, the government said Thursday.

Transgender people and those of ambiguous sex will now be able to list their gender on passports with an 'X' if their choice is supported by a doctor's statement.

Previously, gender was a choice of only male or female, and people were not allowed to change their gender on their passport without having had a sex-change operation. Senator Louise Pratt, whose partner was born female and is now identified as a man, said the reform was a major improvement for travelers who face questioning and detention at airports because their appearance does not match their gender status.

"'X' is really quite important because there are people who are indeed genetically ambiguous and were probably arbitrarily assigned as one sex or the other at birth," Pratt said. "It's a really important recognition of people's human rights that if they choose to have their sex as 'indeterminate,' that they can."

Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd said the new guidelines removed discrimination on the grounds of gender identity and sexual orientation.

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Read more: http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_18897011?nclick_check=1

[TheDebbieDee]

1. Australians are really forward thinking in some respects.........

I'm beginning to honestly believe that one's gender can fall into one of three categories: male, female and intersexed.

After all, life and the world is not black or white. And neither is gender, apparently.

[RKP5637]

2. K&R!!! n/t

[hlthe2b]

3. As forward thinking as this might be...

I cringe to think what some of the US TSA would do when presented that....

I don't think my concerns are unfounded....:shrug:

[mitchtv]

6. an invitation to a cavity search

around here

[saras]

4. Cool. Now if enough straight-looking people would sign up as "indeterminate"...

...the whole thing can be made that much less important.

It would be great if there were so many "indeterminate" people that you could no longer assume anything about them.

[kiranon]

10. Agree. n/t

[alp227]

5. When's the fundamentalist exodus from the land down under? n/t

[villager]

7. Wow... this actually got unrecc'd on DU?

I'm tellin' ya, the "U" part is becoming more and more vestigial every day...

[villager]

8. a "CC!"

n/t

[villager]

9. Triplicate -- maybe it's the meteor?

n/t

[raccoon]

11. Now, if we could just get DU to do that. nt

[truthisfreedom]

12. Other?

[mainer]

13. Medical CT scan programs have three gender choices, too

before the scan begins, the computer requires patient information. And for gender, the technician can choose male, female, or other.

[Freddie Stubbs]

14. I wouldn't suggest traveling to somewhere like Saudi Arabia with one of those passports