Intersex rights in Kenya

Last updated
Intersex rights in Kenya
Kenya (orthographic projection).svg
Kenya
Protection of physical integrity and bodily autonomy No
Protection from discrimination No
Access to identification documents Yes

Intersex people in Kenya face significant human rights violations, starting from birth. There are few protections from mutilation and non-consensual cosmetic medical interventions and no legislative protection from discrimination. Intersex persons may have difficulties in obtaining birth certificates and others forms of documentation.

Contents

History

Traditionally, children who are identified as having an intersex condition at birth were killed. This is beginning to change, according to midwives and birth attendants' organizations. [1] Surviving intersex children may have difficulties in obtaining birth certificates and other forms of identification. [2]

In December 2017, African intersex activists published a statement setting out local demands. [3]

In August 2018, the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights published a report calling for research and legal reform to protect the rights of intersex persons in Kenya. [4]

Physical integrity and bodily autonomy

.mw-parser-output .legend{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}.mw-parser-output .legend-color{display:inline-block;min-width:1.25em;height:1.25em;line-height:1.25;margin:1px 0;text-align:center;border:1px solid black;background-color:transparent;color:black}.mw-parser-output .legend-text{} Legal prohibition of non-consensual medical interventions Regulatory suspension of non-consensual medical interventions Protection of intersex children from harmful practices.svg
  Legal prohibition of non-consensual medical interventions
  Regulatory suspension of non-consensual medical interventions

Reports suggest that the birth of an intersex infant can be regarded as a curse or bad omen, resulting in infanticide. Seline Okiki, chairperson of the organization of birth attendants, Ten Beloved Sisters, has described how babies born intersex are traditionally killed following birth. [1]

In 2015, it was reported that an intersex adolescent from Malindi, Muhadh Ishmael, was mutilated and later died in hospital. He had previously been described as a curse on his family. [5] [6] [7]

In October 2018, the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights reported that some intersex people have been forced to undergo genital surgeries and, in "some cases the procedures were botched resulting in death". [8]

In the same year, two major national reports were published on the situation of intersex people in Kenya: a report by the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights, [4] and a report of a Taskforce on Policy, Legal, Institutional and Administrative Reforms regarding Intersex Persons in Kenya. [9] Both reports called for reform to protect the bodily integrity of intersex persons, and action to tackle stigma.

The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights called for the convening of an intersex health working group, establishing national guidelines for medical practices, and multi-disciplinary teams, and direct doctors to "advise all parents to withhold “normalizing” surgery until children are at an age when they can make a decision for themselves", investigate infanticide and child abuse, research the impact of intersex medical interventions, and fund access to consented medical treatment. [4]

The Taskforce stated that "Surgical and hormonal interventions for children in relation to their intersex status should only be carried out in case of medical emergency based on informed consent". [9] It recommended that the government provide:

Protection from discrimination

Explicit protection from discrimination on grounds of sex characteristics Explicit protection on grounds of intersex status Explicit protection on grounds of intersex within attribute of sex Inclusion of sex characteristics in anti-discrimination law.svg
  Explicit protection from discrimination on grounds of sex characteristics
  Explicit protection on grounds of intersex status
  Explicit protection on grounds of intersex within attribute of sex

Intersex people are considered to suffer significant stigma. [10] A Kenyan news report suggests high rates of early school leaving, with the organisation Gama Africa reporting that 60% of 132 known intersex people had dropped out of school "because of the harassment and treatment they received from their peers and their teachers". [11] Anecdotal reports point to high levels of suicidality amongst intersex people. [11]

In the 2010 case of Richard Muasya v. the Hon. Attorney General, Muasya had been convicted of robbery with violence. The case examined whether or not he had suffered discrimination as a result of being born intersex. He was found to have been subjected to inhuman and degrading treatment while in prison. [12]

Intersex people in Kenya do not currently have protections from discrimination, but the rights of intersex people are currently a matter of discussion, including through a Taskforce led by nominated MP Isaac Mwaura. [13] [14] [15] In part, this followed a landmark court case decided in 2014, of a child who could not commence school without a birth certificate. [2]

A 2018 report by the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights found evidence of widespread stigma and discrimination, including infanticide, lack of birth registration, and high rates of early school leaving. It found that intersex people suffered from myths that intersex people are the products of a "curse", and that intersex people are gay or transgender, and that these myths impaired their right to a fair trial. [4] It called for legal reform to

The Taskforce recommended that the government:

Identification documents

In 2014, in the case of Baby ‘A’ (Suing through her Mother E.A) & another v Attorney General & 6 others [2014], a Kenyan court ordered the Kenyan government to issue a birth certificate to a five-year-old child born in 2009 with ambiguous genitalia. [2] In Kenya a birth certificate is necessary for attending school, getting a national identity document, and voting. [2] The child's lawyer, John Chigiti, stated that this was a "first step toward recognizing intersex people". [2]

In an earlier, 2010, High Court case, Richard Muasya v. the Hon. Attorney General, the Court had determined that an intersex person was responsible for registering his own birth, following a failure to do so at the time of his birth. [12]

The report of the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights stated that children should not be assigned to a third sex category but that the government should "implement the approach advocated by intersex groups known as the “non-surgical best guess approach”" and "allow intersex persons to change their legal name and gender on all of their identity documents." [4] The Taskforce proposed creation of a third sex category for intersex people, "to facilitate recognition of intersex persons in the law". [9]

Sport

In May 2019, news organizations reported that two women athletes were dropped from the national athletics team, following the decision of the Court of Arbitration for Sport in the case of Caster Semenya. The athletes are 100m and 200m champion Maximilla Imali and 400m runner Evangeline Makena. [16]

Rights advocacy

Intersex organizations in Kenya include Intersex Persons Society of Kenya, and Jinsiangu/Jinsi Yangu. Both organizations were acknowledged as key Non-State institutions in the Taskforce report, along with Gender Minority Advocacy Trust. [9]

Intersex Awareness Day was first marked in Kenya in 2016. A march in Nairobi was organized by Gama Africa, along with petition presented to parliament and events organized by the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights. [11]

In 2017, work commenced on a "Model Law on the rights of intersex persons in Africa". A first consultation meeting took place at the Centre for Human Rights at the University of Pretoria, in South Africa. Kenyan representatives included John Chigiti of Gender Minorities Action Trust Foundation-Kenya (GMAT), who represented intersex persons in 2010 and 2014 High Court cases. [17]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBT rights in Kenya</span>

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons in Kenya face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Sodomy is a felony per Section 162 of the Kenyan Penal Code, punishable by 14 years' imprisonment, and any sexual practices between males are a felony under section 165 of the same statute, punishable by 5 years' imprisonment. While female same sex-sexual activity is not explicitly prohibited by law, lesbians, bisexual women and transgender people are not recognised in the Kenyan Constitution, and are discriminated against, covertly. They also undergo corrective rape practices by heterosexual men. On 24 May 2019, the High Court of Kenya refused an order to declare sections 162 and 165 unconstitutional. The state does not recognise any relationships between persons of the same sex; same-sex marriage is banned under the Kenyan Constitution since 2010. There are no explicit protections against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. Adoption is prohibited to same-sex couples.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sex characteristics (legal term)</span>

In law, sex characteristic refers to an attribute defined for the purposes of protecting individuals from discrimination due to their sexual features. The attribute of sex characteristics was first defined in national law in Malta in 2015. The legal term has since been adopted by United Nations, European, and Asia-Pacific institutions, and in a 2017 update to the Yogyakarta Principles on the application of international human rights law in relation to sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression and sex characteristics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Intersex</span> Atypical congenital variations of sex characteristics

Intersex people are individuals born with any of several sex characteristics including chromosome patterns, gonads, or genitals that, according to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, "do not fit typical binary notions of male or female bodies".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Intersex Awareness Day</span> Awareness day observed annually on October 26

Intersex Awareness Day is an internationally observed awareness day each October 26, designed to highlight human rights issues faced by intersex people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LGBT rights in the Australian Capital Territory</span>

The Australian Capital Territory (ACT) is one of Australia's leading jurisdictions with respect to the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and intersex (LGBTQI) people. The ACT has made a number of reforms to territory law designed to prevent discrimination of LGBT people; it was the only state or territory jurisdiction in Australia to pass a law for same-sex marriage, which was later overturned by the High Court of Australia. The Australian Capital Territory, Victoria and Queensland are the only jurisdictions within Australia to legally ban conversion therapy on children. The ACT's laws also apply to the smaller Jervis Bay Territory.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">International Intersex Forum</span>

The International Intersex Forum is an annual event organised, then later supported, by the ILGA and ILGA-Europe that and organisations from multiple regions of the world, and it is believed to be the first and only such intersex event.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Intersex human rights</span> Human rights for intersex people

Intersex people are born with sex characteristics, such as chromosomes, gonads, or genitals, that, according to the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, "do not fit typical binary notions of male or female bodies."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Legal recognition of intersex people</span>

Intersex people are born with sex characteristics, such as chromosomes, gonads, or genitals that, according to the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, "do not fit typical binary notions of male or female bodies".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Discrimination against intersex people</span>

Intersex people are born with sex characteristics, such as chromosomes, gonads, or genitals that, according to the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, "do not fit typical binary notions of male or female bodies". "Because their bodies are seen as different, intersex children and adults are often stigmatized and subjected to multiple human rights violations".

Transgender rights in Australia have legal protection under federal and state/territory laws, but the requirements for gender recognition vary depending on the jurisdiction. For example, birth certificates, recognised details certificates, and driver licences are regulated by the states and territories, while Medicare and passports are matters for the Commonwealth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Timeline of intersex history</span> Overview of notable events in the timeline of intersex history

The following is a timeline of intersex history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Intersex rights in New Zealand</span> Overview of intersex peoples rights in New Zealand

Intersex rights in New Zealand are protections and rights afforded to intersex people. Protection from discrimination is implied by the Human Rights Act and the Bill of Rights Act, but remains untested. The New Zealand Human Rights Commission states that there has seemingly been a "lack of political will to address issues involved in current practices of genital normalisation on intersex children".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Intersex rights in Australia</span> Overview of intersex peoples rights in Australia

Intersex rights in Australia are protections and rights afforded to intersex people through statutes, regulations, and international human rights treaties, including through the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (Cth) which makes it unlawful to discriminate against a person based upon that person's intersex status in contexts such as work, education, provision of services, and accommodation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Intersex rights in the United States</span> Overview of intersex peoples rights in the United States of America

Intersex people in the United States have some of the same rights as other people, but with significant gaps, particularly in protection from non-consensual cosmetic medical interventions and violence, and protection from discrimination. Actions by intersex civil society organizations aim to eliminate harmful practices, promote social acceptance, and equality. In recent years, intersex activists have also secured some forms of legal recognition. Since April 11, 2022 US Passports give the sex/gender options of male, female and X by self determination.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Intersex rights in South Africa</span> Overview of intersex peoples rights in South Africa

Intersex people in South Africa have some of the same rights as other people, but with significant gaps in protection from non-consensual cosmetic medical interventions and protection from discrimination. The country was the first to explicitly include intersex people in anti-discrimination law.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Intersex rights in Germany</span> Overview of intersex peoples rights in Germany

Intersex people in Germany have legal recognition of their rights to physical integrity and bodily autonomy, with exceptions, but no specific protections from discrimination on the basis of sex characteristics. In response to an inquiry by the German Ethics Council in 2012, the government passed legislation in 2013 designed to classify some intersex infants to a de facto third category. The legislation has been criticized by civil society and human rights organizations as misguided.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Intersex rights in Uganda</span>

Intersex people in Uganda face a dangerous environment, with significant gaps in protection from mutilation and non-consensual cosmetic medical interventions and protection from discrimination.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Intersex human rights reports</span>

Intersex people are born with sex characteristics, such as chromosomes, gonads, hormones, or genitals that, according to the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, "do not fit the typical definitions for male or female bodies". Such variations may involve genital ambiguity, and combinations of chromosomal genotype and sexual phenotype other than XY-male and XX-female.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Intersex rights in Mexico</span> Overview of intersex peoples rights in Mexico

In Mexico there are no explicit rights reserved to intersex persons, no protections from non-consensual cosmetic medical interventions on intersex children and no legislative protection from discrimination. Intersex persons may have difficulties in obtaining necessary health care.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Intersex rights in Argentina</span>

Intersex people in Argentina have no recognition of their rights to physical integrity and bodily autonomy, and no specific protections from discrimination on the basis of sex characteristics. Cases also exist of children being denied access to birth certificates without their parents consenting to medical interventions. The National Institute Against Discrimination, Xenophobia and Racism and civil society organizations such as Justicia Intersex have called for the prohibition of unnecessary medical interventions and access to redress.

References

  1. 1 2 Grady, Helen; Soy, Anne (May 4, 2017). "The midwife who saved intersex babies". BBC World Service, Kenya. Archived from the original on May 15, 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Migiro, Katy. "Kenya takes step toward recognizing intersex people in landmark ruling". Reuters. Archived from the original on 2015-09-24.
  3. ↑ African Intersex Movement (December 2017), Public Statement by the African Intersex Movement , retrieved 2018-09-05
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (August 2018), Equal in Dignity and Rights: Promoting The Rights of Intersex Persons In Kenya, Nairobi, ISBN   978-9966-040-49-7
  5. ↑ Odero, Joseph (December 23, 2015). "Intersex in Kenya: Held captive, beaten, hacked. Dead". 76 CRIMES. Archived from the original on April 25, 2016. Retrieved 2016-10-01.
  6. ↑ Stewart, Colin (25 December 2015). "Will Kenyan intersex victim get a decent funeral at least?". 76 CRIMES. Archived from the original on 2017-05-01. Retrieved 2017-05-13.
  7. ↑ Larsson, Naomi (February 10, 2016). "Is the world finally waking up to intersex rights?". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077. Archived from the original on September 28, 2016. Retrieved 2017-05-13.
  8. ↑ Cornel, Ernest (2018-10-11). "Intersex persons forced to undergo surgery — KNCHR". The Star, Kenya. Retrieved 2019-06-02.
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Office of the Attorney General and Department of Justice (2018), Report of the Taskforce on Policy, Legal, Institutional and Administrative Reforms regarding Intersex Persons in Kenya
  10. ↑ Duggan, Briana (January 5, 2017). "Shame, taboo, ignorance: Growing up intersex". CNN. Archived from the original on July 3, 2017. Retrieved 2017-05-13.
  11. 1 2 3 Odhiambo, Rhoda (October 20, 2016). "Kenya to mark international intersex day next week". The Star, Kenya. Archived from the original on May 11, 2017. Retrieved 2017-05-13.
  12. 1 2 International Commission of Jurists (2010). "Richard Muasya v. the Hon. Attorney General, High Court of Kenya (2 December 2010)". International Commission of Jurists.
  13. ↑ Chigiti, John (September 14, 2016). "The plight of the intersex child". The Star, Kenya. Archived from the original on January 29, 2017. Retrieved 2017-05-13.
  14. ↑ Njagi, John (October 10, 2016). "House to address matters of intersex people". Daily Nation. Archived from the original on December 13, 2016. Retrieved 2017-05-13.
  15. ↑ Kadida, Jillo (September 1, 2016). "Intersex people don't choose their gender, says Maraga". The Star, Kenya. Archived from the original on November 11, 2016. Retrieved 2017-05-13.
  16. ↑ Agence France Press (2019-05-11). "Kenya drops two female sprinters over testosterone levels". Eyewitness News. Retrieved 2019-06-02.
  17. ↑ University of Pretoria (April 26, 2017), Centre for Human Rights hosts first consultative meeting to discuss draft model law on the rights of intersex persons in Africa, archived from the original on January 4, 2018

Bibliography

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.