A survey has found that 37.3 percent of transgender people in the nation have experienced gender-related discrimination or bullying in the workplace, the Taiwan Alliance to Promote Civil Partnership Rights said yesterday.
The alliance’s survey showed that 55.41 percent of transgender people said that they had been afraid to use a public restroom, 18.53 percent had been harassed or attacked in public, while 15.83 percent had been afraid to ask a police officer or other professional for help.
The survey, conducted from March 14 to Wednesday last week, was based on 518 valid responses from transgender people aged 14 to 78, the alliance said.
The results were released yesterday to coincide with International Transgender Day of Visibility, it said.
A transgender woman, who identified herself only as Alice, said at a news conference in Taipei that few people are aware of the challenges transgender people face in society.
Some avoid using public bathrooms to the point of developing health problems, while others, having been forced out by their families, have trouble supporting themselves financially, she said.
“For transgender people, just surviving is a very difficult thing,” she added.
Sexual reassignment surgery is classified as a non-essential, cosmetic procedure in Taiwan, said Lung-er (龍二), a transgender man.
“However, for transgender people, this is a very necessary operation,” he said, urging the government to include sexual reassignment surgery in the National Health Insurance system.
Under an administrative order issued by the Ministry of the Interior in 2008, people who wish to legally change their gender are required to provide proof that they have undergone surgery to remove their reproductive organs, as well as undergoing assessments by two psychiatrists, the alliance said.
The surgery requirement is a contravention of the International Bill of Human Rights, alliance secretary-general Chien Chih-chieh (簡至潔) said.
Within the transgender community, people have different opinions on the necessity of surgery, she said.
While some question its safety, others believe that only by undergoing surgery can their physical characteristics be aligned with their self-identity, she added.
Transgender people should not be considered a homogeneous group, Chien said, adding that doing so would result in policies that are unable to meet all of their individual needs.
A study published by online booking platform Expedia revealed searches for travel to Taipei have ballooned 2,786 percent following the lifting of COVID-19 pandemic travel restrictions due to the city being a “designation dupe” for Seoul. The TikTok trend for duping — referring to substituting a designation for a more inexpensive alternative — helped propel interest in Taipei, it said in a consumer survey titled “Unpack ‘24,” which was conducted from September to October in 14 countries. Location dupes are “every bit as delightful as the tried-and-true places travelers love,” Expedia trend tracker Melanie Fish said of the year’s popular alternatives, which
SAFETY IN REGULATION: The proposal states that Chiayi should assess whether it is viable to establish such a district and draft rules to protect clients and sex workers The Chiayi City Council passed a motion yesterday to assess the viability of establishing a regulated red-light district. The council yesterday held its last session of the year, at which its fiscal 2024 budget was approved, along with 61 other proposals. The proposal to assess the viability of establishing a red-light district was put forward by independent Chiayi City Councilor Molly Yen (顏色不分藍綠支持性專區顏色田慎節). The proposal cited 2011 amendments to the Social Order Maintenance Act (社會秩序維護法), which stipulate that city and county governments can pass autonomous regulations on the sex trade to manage the industry and guarantee industry workers’ rights. A ban on the
A small-scale protest that called on the government to cancel its plan to welcome Indian migrant workers in a bid to tackle Taiwan’s labor shortage was held in Taipei yesterday. During the protest, comprised of a few dozen people staged in front of the Presidential Office on Ketagalan Boulevard, the protest’s chief initiator, a woman identified only as “Yuna” said they wanted the central government to reconsider allowing migrant workers from India to enter Taiwan. Most people in Taiwan had little knowledge about the potential plan to allow in Indian migrant workers until a report in the media last month, she
STABILITY AND CHANGE: Flagging in recent polls, Ko this week pledged to maintain President Tsai’s foreign policy, with an emphasis on improving China relations Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chairman and presidential candidate Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) yesterday reiterated that he is “deep-green at heart” in response to accusations that he is pivoting his campaign to align closer with the ideology of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in the face of flagging polls. Ko made the remark at an agricultural policy conference in Taipei, repeating his comments from an interview with CTS News a day earlier. Ko told the CTS host that he would continue to pursue President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) national defense and foreign policy in general, but with an emphasis on establishing a rapport with
RSS