TGEU Comments on Case About a Trans Parent’s Rights in Russia
On 9 July 2020 TGEU and ILGA-Europe jointly submitted written comments to the European Court of Human Rights on the case A.M. and Others v. Russia (Application no. 47220/19)
This case concerns the decision of Russian authorities to restrict a transgender parent’s parental rights on the grounds that contact would have a “negative impact on the mental health and psychological development” of her children.
Our submission argues against this harmful decision and presents information about transgender parenthood and research that dispels some of the myths and preconceptions that surround it. The intervention also describes broader international trends that contextualise the justifications invoked at the national level for restricting the applicant’s rights: depathologisation of trans identities, protection against discrimination based on gender identity, and on the right to legal gender recognition (LGR). Last, it examines national and international legal developments suggesting that the “best interests of the child” standard should be based on an individualised, contextualised inquiry into the facts, that balances the interests of all those involved, rather than provide a vehicle for negative preconceptions about trans parents.