On March 21st, the National Assembly of the Slovak Republic advanced Bill No. 301/1995 Coll. on the ‚birth number‘ (the number assigned to every citizen after birth indicating date of birth and sex based on external genitals with specific 4 digits, assigned for social security and other identification purposes) to the second reading. 87 out of 150 MPs voted in favor of advancing the proposal. We consider the result of this vote a tragic demonstration of the transphobia and ignorance that reigns in the National Council of the Slovak Republic. We call on the Members of the National Assembly to reject the bill in its second reading. The approval of this bill would result in complete denial of the possibility of legal gender recognition (also referred to as legal gender reassignment or legal transition) in Slovakia, constituting an attack on the human rights of transgender people and, ultimately, their lives.
JOIN US!
This page contents:
- online petition form
- information about the law and why Amnesty International Slovakia considers it harmful
- solidarity messages examples you can share in online and offline space
- contact list of Slovak MPs you can e-mail directly
Read more and sign the petition
By submitting the form below you join our call on the Slovak MPs to:
- reject the transphobic Bill No. 301/1995 Coll. on the ‚birth number‘ and call on the members of your party to vote against it as well;
- refrain from further legal attempts to worsen the human rights situation of LGBTI+ people in Slovakia, and call on the members of your party to refrain from it as well;
- work on the improvement of the legal status of LGBTI+ people in Slovakia and the protection of their human rights.
What is it about?
On March 21st, the National Assembly of the Slovak Republic advanced the draft Bill No. 301/1995 Coll. on the birth number to the second reading. The adoption of this law would constitute a direct attack on transgender people in Slovakia and, ultimately, on their lives, as it would prevent them from undergoing a legal transition that has been legally permitted in Slovakia for 60 years.
The change in the law would require people seeking official gender reassignment (the term ‚sex‘ is used in the law) to undergo a genetic test to prove that the person’s sex has been incorrectly determined in the past.‘ This requirement is contrary to the latest recommendations of the World Health Organisation and the country’s international human rights obligations.
Every person has the right to self-determination and to live in accordance with their identity. It means that a person has the right to define how they feel regardless of the sex assigned to them at birth and also has the right to express their gender identity through their appearance or behavior. To make this right subject to a medical opinion is a violation of the human rights of transgender people and ignores the latest recommendations of the World Health Organisation.
According to the sponsors of the bill, changing the law would not prevent legal transition, but that is not true. Legal gender recognition in Slovakia is impossible without a change in the birth number. The purpose of gender recognition is precisely the change the gender marker in identification documents. Otherwise, a transgender person would be constantly exposed to involuntary social coming-out and the associated risks of bullying, discrimination, or violence.
A de-facto ban on legal gender recognition constitutes a violation of international human rights obligations that bind the Slovak Republic to protect the rights of every individual, including the right to private and family life, the right to self-determination, and other human rights.
Living with documents incorrectly reflecting one’s gender has enormous consequences for the mental health and well-being of transgender people and their loved ones. By making legal transition impossible, the Slovak Republic would be responsible for human rights violations of thousands of people, as well as for the deterioration of their health, with potentially fatal consequences.
We urge the Slovak parliament not to allow this to happen!
Share messages of solidarity
After signing the petition online, you can also send a direct e-mail to Slovak MPs or show your solidarity with transgender people in Slovakia online. Share messages of hope and solidarity along with petition link on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. Don’t forget to tag Amnesty Slovakia with every post, so we can share your message with the wider audience:
Instagram: @amnesty_international_slovakia
Facebook: Amnesty International Slovensko
Twitter: @AmnestySlovakia
Get inspired or use our messages of solidarity:
- You are not alone, people from London / Paris / Dublin / Germany / Belgium / Spain / … support you.
- The rights of transgender people are human rights.
- We stand in solidarity with transgender (both binary and nonbinary) and intersex people in Slovakia. We call on Slovak authorities to drop the bill de facto forbidding legal gender recognition.
Social media graphics in English
Social media graphics in Slovak
