Introduction Te Kāhui Tika Tangata | Human Rights Commission is mandated to protect and promote human rights for everyone, and affirms the rights of trans and non-binary people to be who they are. In this publication, we outline how human rights law in Aotearoa New Zealand protects you. We also provide some information about what you can do if you feel your rights have been breached, including via our free, confidential dispute resolution service. Trans rights are human rights All people have the same human rights and freedoms and are born free and equal in dignity and rights. Transgender and non-binary people exist across the world and span all ages, ethnicities, societies, and cultures. Tangata Whenua and other Indigenous peoples with a range of sexual orientations, gender identities and expressions, and sex characteristics have existed throughout history, including in the Pacific and Te Ao Māori. There are many culturally specific terms relating to sexual orientation and gender identities. These concepts are more about (or just as much about) familial, genealogical, social, and cultural individuality. For example: Tangata ira tāne and Whakawahine (Māori); Fa’afafine (Samoa & American Samoa); Leiti/Fakaleiti (Tonga); Fakafifine (Niue); Akava’ine (Cook Islands); Pina (Tuvalu), Māhū (Taihiti and Hawaii); Vakasalewalewa (Fiji); and Palopa (Papua New Guinea). Under international human rights standards, everyone has the right to be recognised, respected, and participate in public life. You have the right to define your own gender and be free from harm based on your gender.1 Under international human rights standards, everyone has the right to be recognised, respected, and participate in public life. You have the right to define your own gender and be free from harm based on your gender. 1 See https://tikatangata.org.nz/human-rights-in-aotearoa/rights-of-sexual-and-gender-minorities and https://yogyakartaprinciples.org/.