StopIGM.org

Photo: StopIGM.org’s Daniela Truffer in the Cologne Courthouse, 06.02.2008, on occasion of the historical win of 100’000 Euros damages for non-consensual unnecessary surgery by intersex claimant Christiane Völling (front right, cut) and her lawyer Georg Groth (back, with hat). Welcome back to the land of the living, Daniela!

By Daniela Truffer

Last week my heart stopped beating. I had spent weeks denying the fact that I had to go to the hospital, out of my fear of doctors in general and hospitals in particular. In the end I couldn’t even walk five minutes with my dog without being out of breath and having serious chest pain.

But still, Markus had to drag me to the Cardiology Department at the University Hospital of Zurich (where I had been due for my bi-annual check-up since January) for an ultrasound, where the problem was detected at once: tachycardia. Probably due to my condition or a previous surgical scar, my heart had kind of short circuited, with an electric current circling in it at a fixed speed, every second round triggering a heart beat overriding the usual impulses, leading to my heart running at a constant rate of 134 all the time.

Now my heart was weakened because of the effort, and didn’t work properly anymore. The doctors told me that they had to perform a cardioversion urgently, a medical procedure to convert my unhealthily fast heart rate to a regular rhythm by applying an electric shock to stop the circling current, a procedure they would do about daily.

I was terrified, thought of running out, accepting the alternative of dying within weeks, better than being treated in a hospital bed again (after 33 years of luck). Just entering a hospital and walking through the corridors makes me sick, every time.

Then the fear of dying gained the upper hand.

I insisted on Markus being present all the time, even during the procedure, and the doctors finally accepted, because I told them of my phobia of doctors and hospitals. (They knew about my intersex status from the medical record, and obviously also about my opinion on the surgeries in the media.)

I called my parents, old memories of my childhood in hospitals and their helplessness emerged, we cried together. They came to Zurich the next day, when the procedure was performed.

I was in tears out of fear, when the sedative hit. Markus told me, that after the electric shock was given, my heart beat stopped for a while, but then started again – thankfully triggered again by the regular impulses.

When I woke up, Markus was there and my parents, and I was relieved beyond all measure. Walking out of the hospital was like starting a new life.

Of course it was not over yet, as due to my heart now starting to beat stronger again, during the night my lungs started filling with water, making it impossible to lay down. But with appropriate medication, this too resolved eventually, and three days later I could get my first night of proper sleep since weeks.

Now I should do a bit more sport. Self-check my heart regularly. Not miss my bi-annual check-ups. Work more on my compulsive self-sabotaging behaviour. And try to avoid activities known to entail exposure to unhealthy levels of self-exploitation, burn out, mobbing, marginalisation, resentment, you name it. I wish.

>>> Bearing withess to IGM practices: Daniela’s personal story (PDF)  

Kispi Zurich, 31.10.2013: Directeur Malagoli lit le 2e appel pour un traitement du passé

Communiqué de StopIGM.org:

En 2012 et 2013, Zwischengeschlecht.org / StopIGM.org a proposé de faire une recherche historique approfondie sur les mutilations génitales intersexes à l’Hôpital des Enfants et l’Université de Zurich, en particulier sur les amputations du clitoris, et de commencer un traitement du passé.

En 2014 l’Hôpital des Enfants de Zurich (Kinderspital ou “Kispi”) a commencé une recherche historique avec une étude pilote sur les dossiers medicaux 1945-70 qui a été étendue en 2015 (PDF, en allemand).

Une deuxième étude du Kispi, cette fois de deux ans, a commencé aussi en 2015.

Maintenant le Fonds National Suisse de la Recherche Scientifique (FNS) a annoncé que l’Hôpital des Enfants et l’Université de Zurich ont commencé une troisième “recherche interdisciplinaire” 2016-18 avec le financement du FNS de 500’000 francs suisses.

StopIGM.org salue la continuation de la recherche historique approfondie sur la question des traitements non-consentis sur les enfants intersexes 1945-70, et on espère que d’autres hôpitaux vont suivre.

Malheureusement, ce nouveau projet soulève toutefois des questions délicates:

On demande une représentation adéquate des personnes concernées et leurs organisations!

Le Fonds National promet une “étude non-partisan” et une “vision équilibrée qui tiendra compte du point de vue de toutes les parties concernées”.

Mais “l’équipe interdisciplinaire” du projet est constituée majoritairement de médecins de l’hôpital des enfants de Zurich, et les personnes concernées et leurs associations ne sont pas représentées. Se pose alors la question d’une représentation adéquate des personnes concernées.

Traitement du passé par destruction des dossiers médicaux?

En plus on est vivement préoccupés qu’apparemment 90% des dossiers médicaux concernant des opérations génitales forcées soi-disant “virilisantes” ont été triés et détruits avant le début du projet. Détruire des dossiers – ce n’est pas le traitement du passé que les personnes concernées exigent.

Il faut un vrai traitement du passé avec la représentation adéquate des personnes concernées et leurs associations, par une Commission Vérité et Réconciliation.
Il faut que le gouvernement et les médecins reconnaissent la souffrance que les traitements forcées ont infligées à des personnes intersexes.
Et, il faut assurer la réparation aux victimes, comme préconisé par la Commission nationale d’éthique, et les Comités de l’ONU des Droits de l’Enfant et contre la Torture.

  La 1e manif intersexe devant le Kispi Zurich dans la Télé Suisse, 08.07.2008

Conseil Fédéral: Operations forcées seulement “par le passé”, les recommandations de la Commission nationale d’éthique “déjà mises en œuvre”

En Juillet de cette année, le Conseil Fédéral (le gouvernement de la Suisse) a finalement publié une prise de position sur les recommandations de la Commission nationale d’éthique (NEK-CNE) émises en 2012 (PDF).

Selon le Conseil Fédéral les opérations génitales et autre traitement forcé ont eu lieux que “par le passé” et la “majorité des recommandations émises par la CNE […] sont mises en œuvre ou en passe de l’être”.

La Commission nationale d’éthique a préconisé une revue légale et des responsibilités, délais de prescription et droit pénal, pour assurer la réparation aux victimes adultes, et un soutien psychosocial adéquat aux familles. Une revue légale et un soutien adéquat ont aussi été préconisé par le Comité des Droit de l’Enfant et le Comité contre la Torture de l’ONU.

Pendant que le Conseil fédéral refuse complètement un soutien psychosocial, les opérations forcées sur les bébés intersexes sont toujours pris en charge par l’assurance-invalidité.

L’ONU condamne les Mutilations Génitales Intersexes en Suisse et ailleurs – prochaine réprimande en Novembre

Le Comité de l’ONU des droits de l’enfant (CRC) a déjà réprimandé la Suisse pour les pratiques MGI, les qualifiant comme “pratique préjudiciable” (comme les mutilations génitales féminines), secondé par Comité contre la torture (CAT), qui les a condamnés comme des des “traitements inhumains” en violation de la prohibition de la torture.

Début Novembre la Suisse sera questionnée par le Comité des Droits des Femmes (CEDAW) sur les mutilations génitales des enfants intersexes. StopIGM.org espère que le Comité va de nouveau condamner ces traitements comme “pratique préjudiciable”, et que la Suisse va être réprimandée pour la troisième fois, marquant la 19e reprimande d’un Comité de l’ONU pour les Mutilations Génitales Intersexes (MGI).

La Manif devant le Kispi du 31.10.2013 sur Al Jazeera

>>> Mutilations Intersexes : « Seule la peur du juge va bouger les choses »
>>> Pratique préjudiciable: La France réprimandée sur les MGI pour la 3e fois

Photo: UNHRC UPR #14, Geneva 20.10.2012

Press Release by StopIGM.org, 07.10.2016:

Today, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) published the “Concluding Observations” of its 73rd Session.

Therein, the Committee again recognised Intersex Genital Mutilations as a “harmful practice”, and issued strong binding recommendations obliging both South Africa and New Zealand to “guarantee […] bodily integrity, autonomy and self-determination of all children, including intersex children”, and to “adopt legal provisions to provide redress to victims of such treatment, including adequate compensation”:
    South Africa: CRC/C/ZAF/CO/2 (PDF) –> paras 37–38, p. 10 | Transcript Session Q&A
    New Zealand: CRC/C/NZL/CO/5 (PDF) –> paras 25 + 15, p. 8 + 4–5 | Transcript Session

StopIGM.org warmly welcomes these clear verdicts, marking
  • 8 reprimands for IGM practices by CRC
  • 18 UN reprimands for IGM so far
  • now 13 countries reprimanded in Europe, South America, Asia, Oceania and Africa.

In collaboration with local intersex human rights defenders and their organisations, we will continue to denounce the ongoing practice in ever more countries to relevant human rights bodies, including CRC, the Committee against Torture (CAT), the Human Rights Committee (HRCttee), the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).

States as contracting parties to the Convention on the Rights of the Child and other applicable Covenants including CAT, CRPD, CEDAW and CCPR can no longer feign ignorance of the illegal nature of IGM practices, but now must take all appropriate measures including legislation to eliminate them, and to guarantee access to effective redress and justice for all survivors!
  

Intersex Genital Mutilations in ZA: 2016 UN-CRC Report 
Human Rights Violations Of Persons With Variations Of Sex Anatomy
IGM in ZA • Infanticide of intersex newborns • A Harmful Practice
>>>  Download (PDF 929 kb)

The binding CRC recommendations on intersex for South Africa:

>>> CRC/C/ZAF/CO/2 (PDF) –> paras 37–38, p. 10

“E.  Violence against children (arts. 19, 24 (3), 28 (2), 34, 37 (a) and 39)

Harmful practices

37.  The Committee is concerned at the high prevalence of harmful practices in the State  party,  including  child  and  forced marriage, virginity testing, witchcraft, female genital mutilation, polygamy, violent or harmful initiation rites, and intersex genital mutilation.
The  Committee is further concerned that, although the practice of ukuthwala involving children is considered as an ‘abuse of ukuthuwala’ and is a crime, as the State party noted during the dialogue, this practice still exists.

38. In the light of its general comment No. 18 on harmful practices (2014), adopted jointly with the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, the Committee urges the State party to:

(a)  En sure that the State party’s legislation prohibits all forms of harmful practices used on children in the State party, including through, among others, criminalizing the practice of child and forced marriage and regulation of initiation schools;

(b)  Develop and adopt a national action plan to effectively eliminate such practices;

(c)  Ensure meaningful participation of all stakeholders, including children affected or at risk of harmful practices and their communities in developing, adopting, implementing and monitoring of relevant laws and policies;

(d)  Guarantee bodily integrity, autonomy and self-determination of all children, including intersex children, by avoiding unnecessary medical or surgical treatment during infancy or childhood;

(e)  Build capacity of all professional groups working for and with children to prevent, identify and respond to incidents of harmful practices and to eliminate customary practices and rituals which are harmful to children;

(f)  Ensure sanctions on perpetrators of harmful practices, including perpetrators of the abuse of ukuthwala, and provide effective remedies to the victims of harmful practices.”
  

Intersex Genital Mutilations in NZ: 2016 UN-CRC Report 
Human Rights Violations Of Persons With Variations Of Sex Anatomy
IGM in NZ • Children sent overseas for surgery • A Harmful Practice
>>>  Download (PDF 720 kb)

The binding CRC recommendations on intersex for New Zealand:

>>> CRC/C/NZL/CO/5 (PDF) –> paras 25 + 15, p. 8 + 4–5

“E.  Violence against children (arts. 19, 24 (3), 28 (2), 34, 37 (a) and 39)

Harmful practices

25.  The Committee recommends that the State party:

(a)  Develop awareness-raising campaigns and programmes targeting households, local authorities, religious leaders and judges and  prosecutors, on the harmful effects of early marriage on the physical and mental health and well-being of children, especially girls.

(b)  Develop and implement a child rights-based health care protocol for intersex children, setting the procedures and steps to be followed by health teams, ensuring that no one is subjected to unnecessary medical or surgical treatment during infancy or childhood, guaranteeing the rights of children to bodily integrity, autonomy and self-determination, and provide families with intersex children with adequate counselling and support;

(c)  Promptly investigate incidents of surgical and other medical treatment of intersex children without informed consent and adopt legal provisions to provide redress to victims of such treatment, including adequate compensation;

(d) Educate and train medical and psychological professionals on the range of  biological and physical sexual diversity and on the consequences of unnecessary surgical and other medical interventions on intersex children;

(e) Extend free access to surgical interventions and medical treatment related to their intersex condition to intersex children between the age of 16 and 18.

C.  General principles (arts. 2, 3, 6 and 12)

Non-discrimination

15.  The  Committee recalls its previous recommendation (CRC/C/NZL/CO/3-4, para. 25) and recommends that   the State party ensure full protection against discrimination on any ground, including by:

(a)  Taking urgent measures to address disparities in access to education, health services and a minimum standard of living by Maori and Pasifika children and  their families;

(b)  Strengthening its measures to combat negative attitudes among the public as well as other preventive activities against discrimination and, if necessary, taking affirmative action for the benefit of children in vulnerable situations, such  as Maori and Pasifika children, children belonging to ethnic minorities, refugee children, migrant children,  children with disabilities, lesbian, bisexual, gay, transgender and intersex children and children living with persons from these groups;

(c)  Taking all measures necessary to ensure that all cases of discrimination against children are addressed effectively, including with disciplinary, administrative or – if necessary – penal sanctions.”

The international intersex human rights NGO StopIGM.org demands the prohibition of forced genital surgeries on children and adolescents with Variations of Sex Anatomy and “Human Rights for Hermaphrodites too!”

Persons concerned shall later decide themselves, if they want surgeries or not, and if yes, which.

Kind regards

Daniela “Nella” Truffer, Markus Bauer
Founding members human rights NGO Zwischengeschlecht.org / StopIGM.org

Mobile +41 (0) 76 398 06 50
Mobile +41 (0) 78 829 12 60

presse_at_zwischengeschlecht.info

http://StopIGM.org

See also:
• UN Committee for the Rights of the Child (CRC): IGM = Harmful Practice + Violence
• UN Committee against Torture (CAT) 2015: IGM = Inhuman Treatment or Torture
• UN Women’s Rights Committee (CEDAW): IGM = Harmful Practice
• UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD): Violation of Integrity
• UN Human Rights Committee (HRCttee) to examine IGM Practices
• CAT 2011: Germany must investigate IGM practices and compensate survivors!

Intersex Genital Mutilations • 17 Most Common Forms
Human Rights Violations Of Children With Variations Of Sex Anatomy
IGM – Historical Overview • What is Intersex? • How Common are IGMs?
>>> Download PDF (3.65 MB)     >>> Table of Contents

UPDATE: UN-CRC reprimanded both South Africa + New Zealand for IGM practices! YAY!!

Head of South African Delegation, Deputy Minister Hendrietta Ipeleng Bogopane-Zulu speaking:
UN-CRC 73rd Session @ Palais Wilson, Geneva 19.09.2016

Press Release by StopIGM.org, 06.10.2016:

During its 73rd Session, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) investigated Intersex Genital Mutilations in New Zealand and South Africa, expertly questioning both delegations.

Since 2015, CRC has consistently recognised IGM as a “harmful practice” (like FGM) in breach of Art. 24(3) of the Convention.

StopIGM.org is again expecting stern reprimands for both states in the “Concluding Observations” to be published by the Committee later today, marking

• 8 reprimands for IGM practices by CRC
• 18 UN reprimands for IGM so far
• now 13 countries reprimanded in Europe, South America, Asia, Oceania and Africa.

Typically, UN treaty bodies oblige complicit State parties to

• take effective legislative, administrative, judicial or other measures to prevent involuntary non-urgent surgery and other treatment on intersex children, and to guarantee bodily integrity, autonomy and self-determination to the children concerned
• adopt legal provisions to ensure access to redress and adequate compensation for victims
• provide families with intersex children with adequate counselling and support

Besides the Committee on the Right of the Child (CRC), also the Committee against Torture (CAT), the Committee for Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) have regularly recognised IGM practices as a violation of the relevant UN Conventions. Currently, also the Human Rights Committee (HRCttee) is investigating IGM as a breach of CCPR.

After evidence and testimony, UN acts

StopIGM.org and South African and New Zealand intersex advocates, NGOs and NHRIs including Legal Resources Centre, Iranti-org, Gender DynamiX, ITANZ Intersex Awareness New Zealand and the NZ Human Rights Commission provided the Committee with evidence of the ongoing practice in both countries, resulting in repeated questions by Committee experts during the interactive dialogue in Geneva, including on New Zealand sending intersex children overseas to RCH Melbourne for non-consensual genital surgeries.

Intersex Genital Mutilations in NZ: 2016 UN-CRC Report 
Human Rights Violations Of Persons With Variations Of Sex Anatomy
IGM in NZ • Children sent overseas for surgery • A Harmful Practice
>>>  Download (PDF 720 kb)

Answering for New Zealand, Dr Pat Tuohy, paediatrician and Chief Adviser of the Ministry of Health, went down the well-trodden path of denial and pinkwashing, claiming “no surgery from 2006” while at the same time patently “confusing” involuntary intersex surgery and “gender assignment surgery”. >>> Full Transcript

Intersex Genital Mutilations in ZA: 2016 UN-CRC Report 
Human Rights Violations Of Persons With Variations Of Sex Anatomy
IGM in ZA • Infanticide of intersex newborns • A Harmful Practice
>>>  Download (PDF 929 kb)

On the other hand, South African delegate Zane-Udien Dangor (Deputy Minister’s Special Advisor, Department of Social Development) made intersex human rights history – and South Africa the very first State to officially recognise the “essentially harmful practices” on “intersex children” at the UN:

“I think as a government we do recognise that being intersex is a sexual characteristic and not a medical condition, but at the same time we recognise that there are still practices where newborns and young children are being, surgeries are performed on them which are harmful. So we are now beginning a process in its early stages, to acknowledging that it’s happening, to engage with universities, particularly the university children’s clinics and other medical practitioners around the fact that this is not a medical condition, that surgeries performed at a very young stage are harmful and that it needs to stop.”  >>> Full Transcript

The international intersex human rights NGO StopIGM.org demands the prohibition of forced genital surgeries on children and adolescents with Variations of Sex Anatomy and “Human Rights for Hermaphrodites too!”

Persons concerned shall later decide themselves, if they want surgeries or not, and if yes, which.

Kind regards

Daniela “Nella” Truffer, Markus Bauer
Founding members human rights NGO Zwischengeschlecht.org / StopIGM.org

Mobile +41 (0) 76 398 06 50
Mobile +41 (0) 78 829 12 60

presse_at_zwischengeschlecht.info

http://StopIGM.org

UPDATE: UN-CRC reprimanded both South Africa + New Zealand for IGM practices! YAY!!

See also:
• UN Committee for the Rights of the Child (CRC) 2015: IGM = Harmful Practice
• UN Committee against Torture (CAT) 2015: IGM = Inhuman Treatment or Torture
• UN Human Rights Committee (HRCttee) to examine IGM Practices
• UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) condemns IGM
• Historic 56th Session of Committee against Torture reprimands 4 Governments over IGM 
• CAT 2011: Germany must investigate IGM practices and compensate survivors!

Intersex Genital Mutilations • 17 Most Common Forms
Human Rights Violations Of Children With Variations Of Sex Anatomy
IGM – Historical Overview • What is Intersex? • How Common are IGMs?
>>> Download PDF (3.65 MB)     >>> Table of Contents

The following is a short presentation by Daniela Truffer (StopIGM.org / Zwischengeschlecht.org) held during the introductory interactive panel at the symposium “After the Recognition of Intersex Human Rights” at the Institute of Advanced Studies (IAS) at the University of Surrey in the UK, and also the 3rd annual meeting of the European Network for Psychosocial Studies in Intersex/Diverse Sex Development (EuroPSI):

The 43rd Session of the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) marked the first time that intersex people participated in a human rights mechanism. The German Association of Intersex People (ImeV), whom I served as a chairperson at the time, submitted a thematic shadow report, to which I contributed my personal story. And early in 2009, Germany was up for review in Geneva. The Committee seemed to mistake Intersex for an identity and trans issue, and didn’t even mention IGM practices in its recommendations, but at least it was the first Concluding Observations mentioning intersex.

Two years later the Association of Intersex People joined forces with the Law Clinic of the Humboldt University (Berlin) and submitted a more elaborate report to the UN Committee against Torture (CAT) …

… who for the first time issued Concluding Observations on IGM practices, recognising them to constitute at least “inhuman treatment” punishable as torture under the Convention, and obliging Germany to undertake investigation of incidents of IGM and to adopt legal provisions in order to provide redress to the victims of such treatment, including adequate compensation.

Over the following years, the German Association and intersex organisations in other countries submitted more reports to various treaty bodies, but in most cases the Committees didn’t even address intersex in their Concluding Observations, and in no case IGM practices.

At StopIGM.org we felt the best strategy would be to first approach the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) to make the case for IGM as a “harmful practice”. We therefore waited until Switzerland was up to be examined by CRC and submitted an extensive thematic report, providing detailed evidence of the ongoing practice, the lifelong severe physical and mental pain and suffering inflicted by it, as well as of the complicity of the State, supplemented by a human rights bibliography and a historical overview of hermaphrodites and IGM through the ages.

When the Committee then invited us for a thematic briefing before the session, it was suddenly in the air that our years of hard work might eventually pay off.

Despite that during the review Switzerland did everything to sidestep the issue, the Committee recognised IGM to constitute a “harmful practice” like FGM, referring to the Swiss National Ethics Commission (NEK-CNE) recommendations and to the CRC-CEDAW Joint General Comment 18/31 “on harmful practices”, obliging state parties to “explicitly prohibit by law and adequately sanction or criminalize harmful practices”, as well as to “provide for redress for victims and combat impunity for harmful practices”.

During the CRC briefing, a Committee member asked if we would also consider writing reports for other countries. In collaboration with international members of our NGO and fellow intersex advocates and organisations, we’ve been continuously submitting reports since, to this day securing 16 reprimands, each time recognising IGM as a “harmful practice”, as “inhuman treatment” or, in the case of CRPD, as a “violation of the physical and mental integrity”.

Even better, by the end of next week or soon after we are expecting two more reprimands by CRC, and one more by CEDAW by the end of October, and even more are already in the making.

Thank you.

See also:
• UN Committee for the Rights of the Child (CRC): IGM = Harmful Practice + Violence
• UN Committee against Torture (CAT) 2015: IGM = Inhuman Treatment or Torture
• UN Women’s Rights Committee (CEDAW): IGM = Harmful Practice
• UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD): Inhuman Treatment
• UN Human Rights Committee (HRCttee) to examine IGM Practices 

Intersex Genital Mutilations • 17 Most Common Forms
Human Rights Violations Of Children With Variations Of Sex Anatomy
IGM – Historical Overview • What is Intersex? • How Common are IGMs?
>>> Download PDF (3.65 MB)     >>> Table of Contents

click to enlarge the poster!

A poster presentation by Daniela Truffer (StopIGM.org / Zwischengeschlecht.org) on occasion of the symposium “After the Recognition of Intersex Human Rights” at the Institute of Advanced Studies (IAS) at the University of Surrey in the UK, and also the 3rd annual meeting of the European Network for Psychosocial Studies in Intersex/Diverse Sex Development (EuroPSI).
Abstract + more photos after the break:

Read more“Human Rights for Hermaphrodites, Too!” – Poster by Daniela Truffer, Surrey 24.09.2016

Screenshot: Palermo perps fessing up to IGM 1 + 3 – Source: Palermo Today, 27.09.2016

A recent italian media article published in various outlets including Palermo Today, La Repubblica and La Stampa documents intersex genital mutilators Prof Marcello Cimador (pictured, chief paediatric urology surgeon and head of the supervising “multidisciplinary team”) and Dr Renato Venezia (gynaecology surgeon) at the “Department for Mother and Child” of the “Policlinico Universitario Paolo Giaccone di Palermo” (Sicily) publicly boasting of removing the uterus and vagina of a 2 year old intersex child (= IGM 3  Sterilising Procedures) plus performing a “reconstruction of the penis and the urethra” (= IGM 1 “Masculising” Surgeries) on the same infant, allegedly “at the request of the parents.”

This comes only three weeks after the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) reprimanded Italy for allowing IGM practices to continue with impunity.

The total ignorance and arrogance of the self-aggrandising genital mutilators excitedly lecturing on “sex-change”, “surgical strategy”, “intense mulidisciplinary teamwork” and “exceptional success” in conjunction with the tacit acquiescence and total failure to put things in perspective of the journalist(s) concerned, make it hard to further comment on this atrocity, except for once more reminding that such involuntary unnecessary surgeries constitute “Harmful Practice” (same as FGM) and “Inhuman Treatment” punishable as torture according to multiple UN human rights bodies.

Our hearts are with the child, seeking solace in the fact that such shameless boasting makes for valuable evidence in front of international human rights bodies, usually resulting in more stern reprimands for IGM practices to the state party concerned, obliging them to to “adopt legal provisions”, “hold perpetrators accountable” and “provide timely and effective access to remedies to victims of such trestment, including adequate compensation.” 

>>> [ WARNING!!! ] IGM 1–3: “Masculinising”, “Feminising”, Sterilising Procedures
>>> Italy: UN-CRPD investigates Intersex Genital Mutilations
>>> UN-CRPD reprimands Italy for Intersex Genital Mutilations

See also:
• UN Committee for the Rights of the Child (CRC): IGM = Harmful Practice + Violence
• UN Committee against Torture (CAT) 2015: IGM = Inhuman Treatment or Torture
• UN Women’s Rights Committee (CEDAW): IGM = Harmful Practice
• UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD): Inhuman Treatment
• UN Human Rights Committee (HRCttee) to examine IGM Practices 

Intersex Genital Mutilations • 17 Most Common Forms
Human Rights Violations Of Children With Variations Of Sex Anatomy
IGM – Historical Overview • What is Intersex? • How Common are IGMs?
>>> Download PDF (3.65 MB)     >>> Table of Contents

The following is a short presentation by Daniela Truffer (StopIGM.org / Zwischengeschlecht.org) held during the introductory interactive panel at the symposium “After the Recognition of Intersex Human Rights” at the Institute of Advanced Studies (IAS) at the University of Surrey in the UK, and also the 3rd annual meeting of the European Network for Psychosocial Studies in Intersex/Diverse Sex Development (EuroPSI):

In the following I’d like to address a sometimes difficult or even painful topic, but one that I feel needs to be addressed, particularly at a symposium like this for scientists and researchers that hopefully want to do better than those who mutilated me and countless of my peers. I mean the topic of arguably mostly unintentional and unconscious complicity of academic intersex researchers with the perpetrators of IGM practices.

It’s an obvious fact that academic research on intersex is usually undertaken at universities that also practice experimental, involuntary, non-urgent genital surgery and other procedures on intersex children. And that also the non-medical research is often relying on collaboration with doctors or on medical data.

As a consequence, from my perspective academic intersex researchers tend to be hesitant about too openly criticising non-consensual genital surgery and other treatments, and adequately framing them as serious human rights violations. Because by doing so they would have to criticise their own institution and peers, and potentially harm their careers.
Nonetheless, in my experience academic research on intersex without acknowledging and addressing academic complicity inevitably leads to biased and skewed results which again constitute and reinforce academic complicity.

As a typical example, which shall remain unreferenced as it may be too close to home, and I would like the discussion to be about facts and mechanisms and not about persons, one typical example is when involuntary non-urgent genital surgery, sterilising and other procedures on intersex children in western clinical academic context are described as normalising interventions whereas the same procedures outside a clinical academic context for example in Africa are described as mutilations.

Or, when academic researchers address violence against intersex people, they only include mobbing on the street or hate speech and other things which mostly are experienced by LGBT but not by intersex people, while intersex genital mutilations are filed under health issues or health care.

At the same time, academic researchers tend to conveniently ignore that IGM practices also in health care settings constitute a crime that must be stopped by criminalisation and adequate sanctions, but instead propose to stop IGM by having academic discussions with the perpetrators.

In addition, as Koyama and Weasel already established in 2002 (PDF), academic intersex research tends to frame intersex as a gender/identity/LGBT issue instead, while neglecting key human rights frameworks including harmful practice and torture, thus “potentially unintentionally perpetrating the invisibility and objectification of intersex people.”

Similarly, academic researchers too often don’t distinguish between mutilated intersex people and those who weren’t mutilated. Truth is, the vast majority of intersex children have been mutilated, but when it comes to intersex people being represented in the media and in academia, it’s usually the opposite.

Same as to my knowledge research on counselling needs of intersex children, where the focus is on LGBT issues like non-binary identities and discrimination, whereas the counselling needs of intersex children suffering from trauma or OCD due to IGM practices is often ignored, as are the counselling needs of parents experiencing guilt as a result of having „consented“ to harmful surgeries on their children.

From my perspective, these are seriously underresearched psychosocial needs of intersex children and their parents, and adequately addressing them would at the same time help to improve their quality of life and overcome academic complicity.

Thank you.

See also:
• UN Committee for the Rights of the Child (CRC) 2015: IGM = Harmful Practice
• UN Committee against Torture (CAT) 2015: IGM = Inhuman Treatment or Torture
• UN Human Rights Committee (HRCttee) to examine IGM Practices
• UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) condems IGM
• Historic 56th Session of Committee against Torture reprimands 4 Governments over IGM 
• CAT 2011: Germany must investigate IGM practices and compensate survivors! 

Thanks and kudos to GayNZ for being the first media outlet to report on the recent review of NZ (transcription) by the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) during its 73rd session – thrice:

>>> Report on the intersex Q&A (19.9.)
>>> Comment on the “shameful silence” in the Gov replies (23.9.)
>>> The main body of the private ITANZ NGO report (24.9.)

(No thanks and kudos however for repeatedly reproducing our transcription and photo without giving a link to the source and no credit at all respectively, and for partially not being able to spell out StopIGM.org in another instance.)

Let’s hope that also mainstream media will pick up this important topic – latest when NZ is going to be reprimanded in about a week or so!

>>> TRANSCRIPTION > NZ Questioned over IGM by UN-CRC – Gov flatly denies – twice!

Intersex Genital Mutilations in NZ: 2016 UN-CRC Report 
Human Rights Violations Of Persons With Variations Of Sex Anatomy
IGM in NZ • Children sent abroad for surgery • A Harmful Practice
>>>  Download (PDF 720 kb)

See also:
• UN Committee for the Rights of the Child (CRC): IGM = Harmful Practice + Violence
• UN Committee against Torture (CAT) 2015: IGM = Inhuman Treatment or Torture
• UN Women’s Rights Committee (CEDAW): IGM = Harmful Practice
• UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD): Inhuman Treatment
• UN Human Rights Committee (HRCttee) to examine IGM Practices 

Intersex Genital Mutilations • 17 Most Common Forms
Human Rights Violations Of Children With Variations Of Sex Anatomy
IGM – Historical Overview • What is Intersex? • How Common are IGMs?
>>> Download PDF (3.65 MB)     >>> Table of Contents

After NZ’s embarrassing flat-out denial (“no surgery from 2006”) despite evidence to the contrary, today it’s the turn of South Africa to be questioned over Intersex Genital Mutilations at the 73rd Session of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) on Mon 19 September 10–13h + 15–18h CET     >>> watch online!
StopIGM.org is reporting LIVE from Palais Wilson in Geneva, expecting tough questions also for ZA, and both South Africa and New Zealand to be reprimanded by 30 September (or soon after).

Session 1, Mon 19.09.2016 10:00–13:00h CET

10:05h: Session has started, the livestream is on. Head of South African Delegation, Deputy Minister of the Department of Social Development, Ms Hendrietta Ipeleng Bogopane-Zulu’s opening remarks.

10:16h: First round of questions by CRC ZA task force members, CRC Vice Chairperson Sara de Jesús Oviedo Fierro starting. Asks about continuation of actin plan, lack of data collection and implementation, lack of support for civil society … participation and children’s right to be heard, regarding the childhood act …

10:32h: CRC task force member Jorge Cardona Llorens (of CRC71 France fame) now on, aks on measures adopted and budgetary measures to promote chidren’s rights … best interest of the child … non-discrimination … right to life …

10:41h: CRC task force member Olga Khazova asking about married children …

10:44h: CRC task force member Maria Rita Parsi continuing with question on violence against children … corporal punishment … bullying in school … barriers to accessing justice … cultural and traditional prejucide … forced marriage … male circumcision …loss of genitals after initiation … virginity tests … genital mutilation … polygamy … no intersex children …

10:55h: 10 minutes pause …

10:16h: Session resumes with first round of responses … Head of Delegation reponds on action plan, children with disabilities, indigenous children … budget … accountability … cultural issues … circumcison … ukuthwala … convictions against circumcisers …

11:32h: First round of follow-up questions, CRC task force member Sara de Jesús Oviedo Fierro

11:34h: CRC member Kirsten Sandberg (of CRC68 Switzerland, CRC 72 UK + Nepal fame!) follows up on harmful practice on intersex children, still undergoing surgery in South Africa when too young to give consent, are you aware of the practice? What measures are you taking? YAY!! 🙂 Unofficial Transcription:

« While we are talking about harmful practices, I wonder about intersex children. As far as I could hear that issue was not raised, and we know that intersex children are still undergoing surgery in your country, when they are, well, just newborns and also later too small to give their consent or to have their autonomy respected in that regard. So I wonder, are you aware of this practice on intersex children, who would be born with, well you could call it unclear gender, unclear genitals, and so there’s been this medical practice of assigning them a gender or a sex, from the very beginning, which has been seen to be harmful to children in the long run. So I would like to hear your views and what measures are you taking in that regard. »

11:35h: Kirsten Sandberg also aks about measures to protect children with albinism from violence?

11:36h: CRC task force member Olga Khazova follows up on medical circumcision in school …

11:37h: CRC member Oussuma also follows up on circumcision in schools, and lack of response on virginy tests …

11:38h: Head of South African Delegation, Deputy Minister, Department of Social Development Ms Hendrietta Ipeleng Bogopane-Zulu answers that no circumcision are happening in schools, only in hospitals. Answers on virginty testing … violence on children with albinism … intersex children will be answered by Mr Dangor when he’ll get the floor … hate speech …

11:48h: CRC task force member Olga Khazova follows up on legal age of 12 for sexual consent …

11:51h: South African Delegatin member Mr Zane-Udien Dangor (Deputy Minister’s Special Advisor, Department of Social Development) replies to intersex children now … admits that being intersexed is a sexual characteristic, not a medical condition … that harmful practices are done to intersex children … engaging with university clinics, but only in early stages … IMPRESSIVE!! 😮 Unofficial Transcription:

« [Undiscernible] is the issue raised I think by Madame Sandberg around intersex children, and [undiscernible] essentially harmful practices linked to that. I think as a government we do regognise that being intersex is a sexual characteristic and not a medical condition, but at the same time we recognise that there are still practices where newborns and young children are being, surgeries are performed on them which are harmful. So we are now beginning a process in its early stages, to acknowledging that it’s happening, to engage with universities, particularly the university children’s clinics and other medical practitioners around the fact that this is not a medical condition, that surgeries performed at a very young stage are harmful and that it needs to stop. So we will be engaging with all the relevant stakeholders on that. »

11:56h: Answer on ukuthwala: is a practice protected by constitution, but abuses are punished severely …

12:06h: Corporal punishment in school is abolished and a criminal offense, corporal punishment at home is planned to be discussed in parliament …

12:07h: Kirsten Sandberg follows up on corporal punishment at home …

12:15h: Answers on social media and protections for children in films …

12:31h: Second round of questions by CRC task force members …

12:42h: Children in prison … armed conflict …

12:53h: Refugee children …

13:01h: Session going overtime, follow-up questions on drugs, drinking, HIV/AIDS …

13:05h: Session closed, to be continued 15:00h.

After the session: I briefly spoke with Mr Zane-Udien Dangor, expressing appreciation for his open and straightforward answer, and suggesting legislation might help to convince hesitant doctors, which he agreed with. He stated the Department would work together with local NGOs, and that he’d read our NGO report as well and that it contained valuable research on South African university clinics. So let’s hope after his good answer the South African Government will follow-up with similar policy, as well as with implementation, enforcement and acces to redress for survivors …

Session 2, Mon 19.09.2016 15:00–18:00h CET

15:05h: Session resumed. Answers by Head of Delegation on schools … circumcision …

15:17h: Answers and follow-up questions on the Human Rights Commisssion … independant follow-up mechanism …

15:24h: Witchcraft and related violence on children, Muti mutilations, a number of people have been persecuted … hazardous substances …

15:32h: Teenage pregnancies, death in childbirth … Data collection measures and tools … foster care … families and care givers …

15:54h: Orphans with HIV/AIDS … disclosure to child required, to family only “when needed” … answers on adoptions … (direct) maintenance payments … enforcement of maintenance payments …

16:21h: Answers on children with disabilities … white paper … 7.5% of South African population are people with disabilities …

16:35h: 10 min pause …

16:50h: Children with disabilities continued … children in prison … naturalisation of children of foreign parents born in ZA …

17:16h: Follow-up questions on high number children in pre-trial detention … are there no children’s courts, youth courts?

17:26h: Answers on measures against sexual violence in schools …

17:35h: Answers on children and drugs … cut short because …

17:37h: 1st round of questions re: OP-SC (Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography) now, for tomorrows OP-SC session …

18:02h: Session closed …

>>> Last Week @ CRC73: New Zealand “not aware” of ongoing Mutilations

Intersex Genital Mutilations in ZA: 2016 UN-CRC Report 
Human Rights Violations Of Persons With Variations Of Sex Anatomy
IGM in ZA • Infanticide of intersex newborns • A Harmful Practice
>>>  Download (PDF 929 kb)

See also:
• UN Committee for the Rights of the Child (CRC): IGM = Harmful Practice + Violence
• UN Committee against Torture (CAT) 2015: IGM = Inhuman Treatment or Torture
• UN Women’s Rights Committee (CEDAW): IGM = Harmful Practice
• UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD): Inhuman Treatment
• UN Human Rights Committee (HRCttee) to examine IGM Practices 

Intersex Genital Mutilations • 17 Most Common Forms
Human Rights Violations Of Children With Variations Of Sex Anatomy
IGM – Historical Overview • What is Intersex? • How Common are IGMs?
>>> Download PDF (3.65 MB)     >>> Table of Contents