As from Thursday, Canadian citizens who want to be identified with other sex categories apart from male and female will have an option as the country introduced the “X” category on her passports and other government documents.
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The development was announced last Thursday by the country’s Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, Ahmed Hussen, in a statement he released.
The statement said the move is part of a broader push to embrace nontraditional forms of gender expression, and sexual orientations.
“An “X” will make it easier for people who do not identify as female (“F”) or male (“M”) to acquire passports and other government-issued documents that better reflect their gender identity,” the statement read.
Last year’s November, the country’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appointed a special adviser to coordinate government efforts to promote equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals.
In June, the Human Rights Act was amended following the passage of a law to include nondiscrimination protections for gender identity and gender expression was passed.
Canada is not alone. At least eight other countries offer a third option on passports or national identification cards. Among them are; Australia, Bangladesh, Germany, India, Malta, Nepal, New Zealand and Pakistan.
