• Have had undergone gender affirmation surgeries. This is an outdated practice, and medical intervention is no longer a prerequisite for gender recognition as evidenced by laws and policies in many countries, including Malta, Argentina, India and other countries. • Paragraph 5.71 & 5.7.2 of the Arahan Jabatan Pendaftaran Negara Bil 9/2007 state that amended of the sex or gender category in the IC is only allowed with a court declaration. (see appendices) • Courts rely on the Corbett vs Corbett 1971 case, which is extremely outdated and problematic in terms gender and trans discourse, as it conflates sex and gender. The four criteria to determine ‘sex’ include chromosome, gonads, genital, psychological factors. These criteria need to be satisfied in order to make the changes. Sex is a combination of chromosomes, gonads, hormones and secondary characteristics. Meanwhile, gender refers to how we see and identity ourselves. Both sex and gender are not binary, and made up of multiple and diverse identities. All human beings have a sex and gender category. Transgender refers a person’s who’s lived experiences ‘do not match’ the assigned identity at birth, or whose sex and gender identity ‘do not match’. Meanwhile, cisgender refers to a person who’s lived experiences ‘match’ the assigned identity at birth, or whose sex and gender identity ‘match’. There are more identities that make up the sex and gender spectrum, including intersex, gender fluid, gender queer and persons of other identities. In two cases in Malaysia, high court judges set aside the Corbett vs Corbett criteria and assessed the medical evidences presented by the applicants. Both judges also cited Article 5 of the Federal Constitution in their decisions, as all citizens have the right to live with dignity. In 2005, Justice James Foong granted an application of a trans woman to change the details in her legal document as per her petition. In this precedent setting case, Justice James Foong set aside the criteria of Corbett vs Corbett. However, judges continued to rely on the Corbett vs Corbett in subsequent cases, and resulted in rejection of applications. In 2016, Justice Nantha Balan granted an application of a trans man to change his details in his legal documents. Justice Nantha Balan departed from the Corbett vs Corbett criteria, and emphasized that ‘… chromosome remain static throughout the individual’s natural life’. In an appeal by the National Registration Department in 2017, the Court of Appeal overturned the High Court decision to lack of evidence of change of chromosomes. Report On Transgender Persons In KL And Selangor | 27