Switzerland rejects a 'third gender'

[ArabellaScott]

'the governing Federal Council said “the binary gender model is still strongly anchored in Swiss society.”

“The social preconditions for the introduction of a third gender or for a general waiver of the gender entry in the civil registry currently are not there,” it said.'

www.euronews.com/2022/12/21/switzerland-rejects-idea-of-a-third-gender-option-in-official-records

Report also notes third gender option exists in Germany, Holland and Belgium.

Not much reported on, these are the only two news items I could find:

apnews.com/article/switzerland-gender-a48e05b6e5d0c307b3ead2bdd686f9a5

This year, Switzerland introduced self ID:

'Switzerland joins Ireland, Belgium, Portugal and Norway as one of the few countries on the continent that allow a person to legally change gender without hormone therapy, medical diagnosis or further evaluation or bureaucratic steps.

Under the new rules written into Switzerland’s civil code, anyone aged 16 and above who is not under legal guardianship will be able to adjust their gender and legal name by self-declaration at the civil registry office'

www.euractiv.com/section/non-discrimination/news/swiss-to-allow-simple-legal-gender-transition-from-1-january/

So the Swiss government thinks it's acceptable to pretend to be a real thing that you aren't, but not to pretend to be an unreal thing that you aren't. At the moment. When society breaks down further, both pretences may become equally acceptable. At which point they may consider legalising another nonsensical and potentially harmful practice.

Another country where any sex-based data analysis will be impossible….

I was just discussing this in another thread and posted a link on some discussions going on the implications of self ID which came into force in Switzerland last January (www.swissinfo.ch/ger/wirtschaft/sind-frauenbadis-in-einer-non-binaeren-gesellschaft-noch-zeitgemaess-/47789448)

I wonder if the Swiss government just couldn't be arsed to spend the money to update the civil register, passports and IDs. That would actually cost something, whereas implementing self ID didn't cost much other than throwing women under the bus of course.

Here's a link to another article in German saying that there are no harmonised rules across Switzerland whether transwomen are put into women's jail (www.tagblatt.ch/leben/tansgender-es-ist-nicht-mehr-glasklar-wer-in-eine-frauenbadi-oder-in-ein-frauengefaengnis-darf-ld.2340334).

I find it particularly odd
since Switzerland has such inequality between the sexes at the moment. But the Swiss are very pragmatic and I expect that they will sort this out when all the old men start identifying as women so they can retire earlier and all the young men identify as women to avoid the paying the tax levied on young men who are unable/unwilling to do national/civil service.

Still mostly advantageous to be male
in midlife though. So being able to change between male and female so easily will be really helpful.

Ah, thanks, Rheia - I saw this referenced on a different thread so went digging, but couldn't find much!

The number of people being transed in Switzerland is soaring.

The country has a terrible record when it comes to women’s rights and even taking children from another country (Italy) to work as labourers in its recent past.

Self-ID is an indication of what a profoundly sexist and intolerant country Switzerland is - it is no surprised that the law past there. It is entirely fitting that the last place in western Europe to give women the vote waved through self-ID without consulting the general population.

When I lived there, I found the homophobia more worse than in the UK.

There are some organisations there that are against transing kids and are pro-women/pro gay rights:

amqg.ch/l-appel

womensdeclaration.com/en/country-info/switzerland/

Switzerland had compulsoary military service for men not women when they turn 18. It’s I think either 10 months or can be split up in three months over a longer period. Ie it’s a big deal.

very interesting to see what happens

Isn't the introduction of a third gender something totally different to self iding or obtaining a GRC? ie most trans people would welcome this as it allows they to argue for the concept that you can change sex.

A third category I thought had first been campaigned for by someone who is intersex (in Germany?).

I remember some waffling by the government that any abuse of the self ID provisions will be prosecuted. I'm looking forward to see if any men will use Self ID to identify out of military service and what the Swiss justice system will do about it.

Self ID-ing into early retirement will soon not be an issue though. The Swiss just voted to harmonise the retirement age for both sexes. Women will soon retire at 65 just like the men.

I remember some waffling by the government that any abuse of the self ID provisions will be prosecuted.

I'd be interested to see on what grounds they could prosecute for false declaration if your only criteria for changing "legal gender" is someone's say so.

They specifically put an exemption in for military service from what I remember

Arabella, thanks for posting those two OPs. But after reading them I think my eyes were spinning in opposite directions.

Thanks for summing it up, Jelly.

So the original articles are nothing to do with trans, but about Switzerland not accepting that intersex people cant register as a 3rd "gender".

The reporting in both articles is really bad andinevitably uses the word gender inappropriately.

But must say I had forgotten that a year ago Switzerland bought in self id for 16+

I wonder, in reference to comments above re army service etc., what % of self id is male to "female" and which is female to "male"

The 'third gender' under discussion was 'non binary', or 'no gender', as far as I can tell.

Thanks yes, I had grasped that, but was really meaning 3rd gender now means different things is different countries. Also it has been rejected by some trans activists whose goal is to be "officially" the opposite sex to the one they are born.