Act assists those marginalised and misunderstood

Replies

Replies by the Minister of the Department of Home Affairs (DHA), Naledi Pandor to my questions prove to be most interesting. I asked the Minister about the Alteration of Sex Description and Sex Status Act, 2003.  The replies indicate that the DHA has received and approved a total of 95 applications since this Act was passed.

Replies to other questions I posed the Minister of Health indicate that the Department of Health does not keep a database of gender reassignment surgical procedures that are performed in public sector facilities.  There are currently two public sector clinics in South Africa with “specialised and skilled held care providers that perform gender reassignment surgical procedures.”  These clinics are linked to the University of Pretoria (UP) and the University of Cape Town (UCT).

The Department of Health indicated that information at hand suggests that the UP clinic has performed more than a hundred procedures since its inception in 1990.  The UCT has performed more than 10 such procedures since its inception in 2009.

All too often, individuals who have a genuine and legitimate need for gender reassignment are marginalised.  All too often such people are not respected and their dignitary is often impinged on.  This happens simply because people don’t, and sometimes refuse, to understand the affected person and his/her circumstances.

Acts such as Alternation of Sex Description and Sex Status Act ensures that the golden principles listed in our Constitution and its Bill of Rights is put into practice. 

It is now up to each and every one of us to be supportive of this and to educate those that do not understand this issue.