Transgender people will be able to choose between a prison for women or for men

QMI agency

Wednesday, 31 January 2018 20:17

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Wednesday, 31 January 2018 20:17

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OTTAWA – transgender people will now be able to choose to be incarcerated in a penitentiary for men or for women based on their gender identity, has announced that correctional Service Canada (CSC) on Wednesday.

In a press release, the organization explained that an offender who is transgender may choose his place of incarceration “regardless of their anatomy or the gender marker on their identity documents, unless there are major concerns related to the health or safety which cannot be resolved”.

The CSC staff will also be required to use the name and pronoun preferred by the prisoner, both in oral and in written documents.

“These changes will improve the safety and dignity of offenders, transgender persons under federal jurisdiction in Canada, affecting all aspects of their daily lives,” said Jennifer Metcalfe, executive director of Prisoners’ Legal Services, an organization that has contributed to the implementation of the changes.

“We are pleased to see that these important improvements a reality for offenders, transgender persons, and their families. It is a question of respect and dignity to which is entitled any human being, including those within our correctional system,” added the president of the Commission of human rights, Marie-Claude Landry.

The Trudeau government had tabled a bill in may 2016 to amend the canadian human rights Act of the person in order to prohibit discrimination based on the identity or expression of gender. The adoption of this legislative measure, the last summer, has forced the correctional Service of Canada to adjust its policy vis-à-vis transgender people.