This article was originally published by the Star Observer. You can find the original article here.
A letter with more than 100 signatories has been sent to Anthony Albanese, demanding an immediate inquiry into “youth gender medicine”, and the cessation of gender-affirming care for children and young people in Australia.
“This is a potential public health disaster of generational significance demanding an independent public inquiry,” the letter claims.
“Until an inquiry is complete, all “gender-affirmation” interventions for children and young people (including puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones and surgeries) must be paused to prevent future harm.”
Organised by the independent think tank Women’s Forum Australia, the letter is co-signed by doctors, lawyers, and politicians, many of whom have a history of being outspoken anti-trans advocates.
The signatories include failed Liberal candidate Katherine Deves, former Prime Minister Tony Abbott, dismissed psychiatrist Jillian Spencer, and Director of Binary Australia (formerly Marriage Alliance) Kirralie Smith.
Three identified detransitioners have also signed.
The letter was also sent to Opposition Leader Peter Dutton, Federal Health Minister Mark Butler, Shadow Health Minister Anne Ruston, and all state and territory health ministers and shadow health ministers.
“Recent developments globally have exposed serious concerns about the ‘gender-affirming’ approach to treating gender-confused youth and there is now a bipartisan consensus in many countries that major changes to practice in this area are needed,’’ the letter reads.
“While lifelong impacts are yet to be fully understood, regret is real, and a growing number of detransitioners believe their gender distress masked other co-morbidities, including autism, untreated sexual trauma, and discomfort with their sexuality.”
The letter cites the controversial Cass Review, and advocates for the use of suppression practices, writing that conversion therapy laws “impede neutral exploratory psychotherapy for gender-confused children and young people”.
Australian Professional Association for Trans Health (AusPATH) CEO Eloise Brooks criticised the letter for failing to offer an evidence-based alternative to gender-affirming care.
“There are legal frameworks, legal requirements, that say if you have a treatment for a group of people and you want to remove that, you can’t replace it with something that’s not as good, or with nothing,” she said. “The only thing they are putting forward are suppression practices, psycho psychotherapy.”
Further inquiries not unnecessary
Signatories emphasised the importance of an “independent public inquiry” on the Federal level, involving experts “independent from the practice of gender medicine”.
Multiple inquiries have taken place into the safety and effectiveness of gender-affirming interventions, such as puberty blockers and hormone treatments, and found them to align with best practice standards.
An independent review into the Queensland Children’s Gender Service last year found that the care being provided was safe, evidence-based, and adhered strictly to national and international guidelines.
The review was triggered by one of the letter’s signatories, Jillian Spencer, who raised concerns about the adequacy of mental health screenings and the potential harm of gender-affirmation therapies on young patients.
Another review, conducted by the Sax Institute, was commissioned by the NSW government after a Four Corners episode highlighted the growing dispute among clinicians in NSW about the best care for children with gender issues. It found puberty blockers to be “safe, effective and reversible”.
Brooks said the repeated calls for inquiries and reviews would continue until they received “a review that gives them the answers that they want”.
“Expert advice over idealogical reviews”
The letter comes days after the Queensland government banned the use of hormone treatments for new patients under 18 who are diagnosed with gender dysphoria, which has been widely condemned by medical experts and human rights groups.
The head of the Australian Medical Association’s Queensland branch, Dr Nick Yim, told The Guardian that it was vital for the government to “prioritise expert advice over ideological views”.
“This is a highly sensitive practice area with a unique and vulnerable patient cohort,” he said, “It is crucial that a knee jerk reaction to an isolated incident does not prevent these patients from accessing the support and care they need.”
Equality Australia CEO Anna Brown said that the calls in the letter did “not reflect the overwhelming medical consensus in Australia and around the world.”
“This is basic medical care that has a life changing impact on the very small number of young people who need it,” she said.
“If care like this was denied in any other context or to any other group of the community people would be outraged and rightly so.”
