A consultative committee is to be set up shortly to establish the best way forward for the introduction of civil unions, Civil Liberties Minister Helena Dalli said this morning.

The minister said civil unions were promised in Labour’s electoral programme and the committee will include stakeholders, such as LGBT people, their parents and researchers.

Dr Dalli was addressing a news conference on the out of court settlement reached with transsexual Joanne Cassar, who had taken Malta to the European Court of Human Rights after she was banned from marrying a man after gender reassignment surgery.

Dr Dalli said the government will move amendments to the Maltese marriage act giving people who would have undergone gender reassignment surgery the right to marry.

Dr Dalli said that the change in the law would be given priority on Parliament’s agenda so as to ease the suffering of people in Ms Cassar’s situation. Unfortunately, she said, this would not change people’s attitude overnight.

“It is easy to change the law but difficult to change the culture into one where everyone’s dignity and rights are respected.

“This is what is needed over and above the change in law,” the minister said.

Ms Cassar said this was a ray of hope after all she had been through. She could now feel truly Maltese and was pleased that the decision to change the law was taken by Malta, rather than the country was forced to do so by a court.

MGRM, Aditus welcome decision

The MGRM and Aditus Foundation welcomed the Government's decision to drop its objection to Ms Cassar's claim to the right to marry.

They also welcomed the Government's pledge to promptly enact the required changes to the Civil Code to ensure recognition of transgender persons as persons of the acquired sex for all intents and purposes, including marriage.

They reiterated the need for a comprehensive Gender Identity Bill, as proposed by MGRM in 2010, that would facilitate the gender recognition of transgender persons and safeguard their fundamental human rights, including the right to respect for privacy and family life.