The municipality of Almere, together with a resident, is going to court to demand that non-binary residents can more easily get an ‘X’ in their passport. Now you need to go to court for this and according to the municipality that is unnecessary.
Panda Wezeman from Almere is non-binary. That means that one feels neither man nor woman. Wezeman also wants to be registered as non-binary at the registry office of the municipality, with an ‘X’ next to the gender. However, according to the municipality, national legislation does not make this easy.
Currently, if someone wants an ‘X’ in their passport, it can only be arranged through the courts. They can then make use of a specific article of law. According to the municipality, this legal procedure costs both the resident and the municipality a lot of time and effort Broadcasting Flevoland.
Wezeman went to court to get the ‘X’ in the passport and was proven right. Nevertheless, the municipality, in consultation with Wezeman, will appeal against the ruling, in the hope that the legislation will change.
‘Sound legislation needed’
“The detour along the court is humiliating, useless and time-consuming,” says alderman Froukje de Jonge of Almere. “It will be better for everyone if sound legislation is soon introduced for the working method of civil affairs, so that going to court does not have to take place at all in the future.”
Wezeman also finds it unnecessary that a lawsuit was necessary for the change. “Personally, I would like to see gender registration done away with altogether, but I can understand that many people are emotionally attached to their M or V,” she says. “
“But there are also more and more people who do not agree with this dichotomy and prefer to be registered with an X. It is time for a change in the law that makes this just as accessible as the binary gender reassignment from M to V or vice versa.”
‘Good to see that the municipality is standing next to residents’
COC Nederland, the interest group for the LGBTI community, is pleased that the municipality is taking this step. “As far as I know, there are no previous cases of a municipality going to court,” said a spokesperson.
“The removal of the mandatory gender designation is important, among other things, for some intersex people, for people who don’t feel at home in the ‘man’ or woman’ category and for everyone who believes that the government doesn’t care about ‘what’s in your underwear. ‘” the spokesperson said. “It is good to see that the municipality is so close to its residents.”
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