Transgender people join Hanoi Pride parade – an annual event celebrating gender diversity. (Photo courtesy of Hanoi Pride) Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - Transgender people in Vietnam have struggled toaccess hormone treatment, psychological consulting and sex reassignment surgerydue to lack of a transgender law, despite one being discussed four years ago.
Representatives from Ministry of Health (MoH), the Institute for LegislativeStudies under National Assembly and Vietnam Union of Science and TechnologyAssociations (VUSTA) voiced the warning at a conference on transgender rightson December 3.
They said an estimated 500,000 Vietnamese transgender people would continuefacing direct health threats by using non-prescribed hormone replacementtherapy and unsafe surgical services.
According to a survey of 150 transgender people in Hanoi, Nghe An and HCMCity, only 7.1 percent have consulted physicians for hormone use whilemore than 53 percent have never had any psychological consultation to preparefor the treatment.
Hospitals in Vietnam are not allowed to offer sex reassignment surgery, so mosttransgender people have turned to other countries for medical interventions,mostly the neighbouring Thailand, a global destination for gender change.
Up to half of those surveyed said they did not have any post-surgicalcare.
Most of them soughtinformation about gender-transition medical services from the transgendercommunity.
“Although hormone replacement therapy is a double-edged sword, most of themfollow their friends’ advice rather than professional consultancy,” saidPham Nguyen Ha, a member of the research group from the non-governmentalorganisation Information Centre.
Besides, transgender people face an uncertain future after undergoing sexreassignment surgeries including unemployment, harassment and discrimination,she said.
In November 2015, Vietnam made a breakthrough by recognising transgender peopleand allowing sex changes on legal documents.
The amended Civil Code, which took effect from January 2017, allowstransgender people who have received sex assignment surgery to register astheir new gender.
Despite this progress, a draft law protecting the legal status and rights oftransgender people – both those who have undertaken sex reassignmentsurgery and who have not – has still not been submitted to the National Assemblynor featured on its official legislative programme.
“It actually offers us more time to develop and carefully evaluate the draftlaw,” claimed Dinh Thi Thu Thuy from the Legal Department under the Ministry ofHealth.
According to Thuy, the draft has some controversial contents that need furtherdiscussion, including only allowing single people to get hormonereplacement therapy or those who have undertaken the therapy for a year toreceive surgery.
“If transgender people decide to have sex reassignment, the process cannot beundone. These provisions aim to give them time to adapt, experience and reflectto clearly make up their mind,” Thuy said.
Sharing the concerns, Luong The Huy from the Institute for Studies of Society,Economy and Environment (iSEE), stressed the lack of policies and medicalservices friendly to the transgender community.
“Threats also come from unready healthcare and legal systems which do notcreate favourable conditions for transgender people to ensure their safety andobtain their rights, not just the gender transition process itself,” hesaid./.
Representatives from Ministry of Health (MoH), the Institute for LegislativeStudies under National Assembly and Vietnam Union of Science and TechnologyAssociations (VUSTA) voiced the warning at a conference on transgender rightson December 3.
They said an estimated 500,000 Vietnamese transgender people would continuefacing direct health threats by using non-prescribed hormone replacementtherapy and unsafe surgical services.
According to a survey of 150 transgender people in Hanoi, Nghe An and HCMCity, only 7.1 percent have consulted physicians for hormone use whilemore than 53 percent have never had any psychological consultation to preparefor the treatment.
Hospitals in Vietnam are not allowed to offer sex reassignment surgery, so mosttransgender people have turned to other countries for medical interventions,mostly the neighbouring Thailand, a global destination for gender change.
Up to half of those surveyed said they did not have any post-surgicalcare.
Most of them soughtinformation about gender-transition medical services from the transgendercommunity.
“Although hormone replacement therapy is a double-edged sword, most of themfollow their friends’ advice rather than professional consultancy,” saidPham Nguyen Ha, a member of the research group from the non-governmentalorganisation Information Centre.
Besides, transgender people face an uncertain future after undergoing sexreassignment surgeries including unemployment, harassment and discrimination,she said.
In November 2015, Vietnam made a breakthrough by recognising transgender peopleand allowing sex changes on legal documents.
The amended Civil Code, which took effect from January 2017, allowstransgender people who have received sex assignment surgery to register astheir new gender.
Despite this progress, a draft law protecting the legal status and rights oftransgender people – both those who have undertaken sex reassignmentsurgery and who have not – has still not been submitted to the National Assemblynor featured on its official legislative programme.
“It actually offers us more time to develop and carefully evaluate the draftlaw,” claimed Dinh Thi Thu Thuy from the Legal Department under the Ministry ofHealth.
According to Thuy, the draft has some controversial contents that need furtherdiscussion, including only allowing single people to get hormonereplacement therapy or those who have undertaken the therapy for a year toreceive surgery.
“If transgender people decide to have sex reassignment, the process cannot beundone. These provisions aim to give them time to adapt, experience and reflectto clearly make up their mind,” Thuy said.
Sharing the concerns, Luong The Huy from the Institute for Studies of Society,Economy and Environment (iSEE), stressed the lack of policies and medicalservices friendly to the transgender community.
“Threats also come from unready healthcare and legal systems which do notcreate favourable conditions for transgender people to ensure their safety andobtain their rights, not just the gender transition process itself,” hesaid./.
VNA
