Brussels
— The European Union's Court of Justice
<http://curia.eu.int/>
has ruled that a British law which granted pension rights
to transsexuals based on their original gender was
illegal.
The EU's highest court
said in Brussels that "the right not be discriminated
against on grounds of sex is one of the fundamental human
rights".
Sarah Margaret Richards
was born a male in 1942, but underwent a sex change
operation in 2001.
In February 2002, she
applied for a pension on her 60th birthday.
However, British law
identified Richards as a male, and as such she would have
to wait until 65 before collecting a pension.
The Government argued
that Richards had been born a male and should wait until
her 65th birthday.
The court said Richards
should be treated as a female.
"The unequal treatment in
this case is based on Ms. Richards' inability to have the
new gender which she acquired following surgery
recognised," the court said.
"That unequal treatment
must be regarded as discrimination."
