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The Human Rights and Equal Opportunities Commission (HREOC) plans to conduct a project on the human rights of sex- and gender-diverse (SGD) people in Australia.
Following meetings with representatives from the SGD community, including the NSW Gender Centre and lobby group Sex And Gender Education (SAGE), Commissioner Graeme Innes has written to key individuals and organisations requesting their feedback on a paper compiled by HREOC regarding the issues SGD people face.
“We have assessed our resources and capabilities over the next six months and have identified capacity for a small to medium-scale project on these issues,” Innes said in the letter, seen by SX.
HREOC does not have the capacity to conduct a national inquiry into the discrimination faced by SGD people, similar to that carried out for gay and lesbian people last year, resulting in its Same-Sex: Same Entitlements report, Innes added.
The main issues HREOC has identified to date are official and identity documents, health policy, protection from discrimination, and education and awareness.
At this stage HREOC is not calling for input from the broader SGD community or its advocates on its issues paper. Instead it wants feedback from selected organisations and individuals, including some medical professionals who work with SGD people.
Once these have been received, it will decide on which area or areas it can help with and will then ask for comments from the general SGD community.
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