Australia recognizes third gender

The Court of Appeal in New South Wales has admitted the existence of a third sex that is neither male nor female. Thus Australia has become the first country in the world to recognize a 'non-specified' gender.

The decision will affect people who have undergone gender reassignment surgery, as well as anyone who identifies as intersex or gender neutral.

It overturned a ruling that everyone must be registered as a man or a woman with the registry of births, deaths and marriages. It declared for the first time that the word 'sex' not bear a binary meaning of "male" or "female".

The decision was a victory for 52-year-old activist Norrie May-Welby who is now referred to by the gender-neutral pronouns "zie" (instead of he/she) or "hir" (instead of him/her).

Norrie was born as a male, went through male-to-female reassignment surgery but later found that being a woman was not what zie felt like either. Zie sought to have his neuter sex reflected in New South Wales Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages and in 2010 became the first Australian to be given the designation "sex not specified". The certificate had been cancelled in four months and Norrie lodged an appeal.