A pioneering Bill for Cyprus is being prepared to be submitted to Parliament for a vote.
This Bill concerns trans people and the legal recognition of gender identity. That is, the change in IDs and documents of a person who wants to undergo gender reassignment, without necessarily undergoing surgery.
Speaking about the issue on SIGMA's show "Mesimeri kai Kati", the Commissioner of Legislation, Louisa Zannettou, stated that the effort started from the Ministry of Justice under Iona Nikolaou, where a text was drafted which was taken to the Legal Service where inspections were carried out, however, some shortcomings were identified.
This text was later sent to the Ministry of Interior and we have made some improvements, and it will be studied, while later it will be publicly consulted, said the Commissioner.
What needs to be emphasized, he said, is the right to self-determination.
In other words, everyone should have the right to choose the gender in which he feels that he represents him and that is the philosophy of the Bill, he added.
As he explained, when someone submits an application for gender reassignment in his documents, then his identity card, passport and ballot paper will be canceled and the correct ones will be given, ensuring the secrecy of the change.
At the same time, he stressed that there are still issues that need to be discussed and some other legislation may change later.
In his own position, Costas Gavriilidis, Advisor of the PD for issues of multiculturalism, acceptance and respect for diversity, said that it is a bill that has been prepared for many years and is now leading to the final submission and voting.
At the same time, he said that society is at a stage where it can more easily accept such a bill, noting that many parents of trans people support their children and ask the state for legal recognition.
The bill, he stressed, concerns only legal recognition.