Controversial new laws for Spain
Spain passes law allowing anyone over 16 to change registered gender
Legislation will also ban conversion therapy, introduce menstrual leave and ease abortion limits
Spain’s parliament has approved new legislation that will allow anyone over 16 to change their legally registered gender, ease abortion limits for those aged 16 and 17, and make the country the first in Europe to introduce paid menstrual leave.
The new transgender law – which was passed despite protests from feminist groups, warnings from opposition parties, and amid tensions between different wings of the Socialist-led coalition government – means that anyone aged over 16 will be able to change their gender on official documents without medical supervision.
However, a judge will need to authorise the change for minors aged between 12 and 14, while those aged between 14 and 16 will need the consent of their parents or guardians. No such changes will be available to those under the age of 12.
The law will also see a ban on conversion therapy – punishable by hefty fines – and an end to public subsidies for groups that “incite or promote LGBTIphobia”.
The new abortion legislation does away with a a 2015 measure, introduced by the conservative People’s party (PP), which requires women aged 16 and 17 to obtain parental consent for abortions. It also scraps the current three-day period of reflection for those seeking a termination, and aims to make it far easier for women to access abortion in public hospitals and clinics.
Thursday’s vote introduces up to five days of menstrual leave for women who have incapacitating periods. According to the Spanish Gynaecological and Obstetric Society, a third of women experience dysmenorrhoea, or painful menstruation. Accompanying measures include the free provision of free sanitary products in schools, prisons and women’s centres to tackle “period poverty”.
Spain’s equality minister, Irene Montero, began her speech to congress on Thursday by thanking Spain’s LGBTQ+ community and trans collectives for helping to get the law passed – and for “saving many lives” in the absence of government intervention.
Montero, who belongs to the Socialists’ junior coalition partners, the far-left, anti-austerity Podemos partner, said the new law was about the state guaranteeing basic rights.
“This is a law that recognises trans people’s right to freely decide their gender identity, she said. “It stops trans realities being treated as abnormalities. Trans people aren’t sick people; they’re people – full stop. They are who they are – full stop. Trans women are women – full stop. From today, the state recognises that.”
However, the PP accused the government of introducing more ill-considered legislation in the wake of the botched “only-yes-means-yes” sexual consent law that has allowed some convicted sex offenders to have their sentences retrospectively reduced. The Socialists have promised to correct the “undesired effects” of that law, angering their partners in Podemos, which pushed the new consent legislation and still defends it.
Before the trans law passed by 191 votes in favour, 60 against and with 91 abstentions, the PP warned the government it was going too far, too fast.
“We all know of other countries that have backtracked on their ‘trans laws’ because they now know that they got ahead of themselves and that that caused a lot of suffering,” said a party spokesperson, MarÃa Jesús Moro. “Let’s not have the same thing here.”
She added: “We don’t want to see a new and unbearable rollcall of victims just days after this new law comes into effect. We don’t want a remake of the ‘only-yes-means-yes’ law.”
However, the new law was welcomed by Uge Sangil, the head of FELGBTI+, Spain’s largest LGBTQ+ organisation.
“We’re celebrating the fact this law has passed after eight years of tireless work to obtain rights for the trans community,” Sangil told Agence France-Presse outside parliament
“We’re winning human rights with the free determination of gender … From today, our lives will change because we are not ill.”
In recent years, several European nations that pioneered transgender legislation *have had second thoughts.
Among those to have reimposed restrictions are Sweden and Finland, while in the UK, Westminster last month blocked a Scottish trans rights law similar to Spain’s.
The bitter dispute over transgender issues played a role in Wednesday’s shock resignation of Scotland’s first minister, Nicola Sturgeon.
Although she had championed the law, Sturgeon became entangled in a major row over transgender women entering all-female prisons, after a rape case that caused a public outcry.
A year ago, Sweden decided to halt hormone therapy for minors except in very rare cases.
In December, it limited mastectomies for girls wanting to transition, to a research setting, citing the need for “caution”.
The decision followed moves by Finland, which decided to restrict gender reassignment hormone treatment for similar reasons in 2020.
Idioms / Expressions:
In recent years, several European nations that pioneered transgender legislation *have had second thoughts.
- to change your opinion about something or start to doubt it (tener dudas, pensarlo mejor)
- She's having second thoughts about marrying him.
- We've had second thoughts. We're not going to move house - not yet anyway.
- He's lucky. He's able to spend thousands on something without a second thought.
- He offered to help us without a second thought.
- I didn't give it a second thought when I got the chance to change job.
- I'll have a glass of white wine - on second thoughts, make it a bottle.
- Let's go the cinema. On second thoughts, we should make the most of the sunshine. Let's go to the park.
Comments
A human being must accept what is. Everyone must have an identity. This is the most important thing in life, that is, for me it´s necessary to know who I am. If I don´t have personality, I am nobody. Then, I won´t have hope to live, projects, wish to work, strength to fight and I will be a zombie. After this, depression will come immediately and, possibly, suicide.
What you are don´t depend on you, essentially, you depend on your parents, your country, your time, your genes and so on. Over these circumstances you can and must sculpt your body, your brain and your personality, but you can´t change your parents, for instance. In my opinion, philosophically, we can´t change our fundament because they are for whole life.
A human being must love himself and, for that, he needs to know himself. He must assume his good points and bad points to be happy. If you want to change, it will be because you don´t love yourself and this is bad way to live.
Excuse me for my boring talk.
See you.
You were very cheery when you wrote this comment. :D
A human being must accept what they are (you have to tread carefully when using pronouns these days haha) . Everyone must have an identity. This is the most important thing in life, that is, for me it´s necessary to know who I am. If I don´t have personality, I am nobody. Then, I won´t have hope to live, projects, wish to work, strength to fight and I will be a zombie. After this, depression will come immediately and, possibly, suicide.
What you are, doesn´t depend on you, essentially, you depend on your parents, your country, your time, your genes and so on. With these circumstances you can and must sculpt your body, your brain and your personality, but you can´t change your parents, for instance. In my opinion, philosophically, we can´t change the fundamentals because they are for our whole lives.
A human being must love himself and, for that, he needs to know himself. He must assume his good points and bad points to be happy. If you want to change, it will be because you don´t love yourself and this is a bad way to live.