Which children have rights? The child’s right to bodily integrity and protection gaps for children with intersex traits under international and national laws
This article examines protection gaps for children with intersex traits under international and national laws governing non-voluntary medicalized interventions into sexual anatomy. Various United Nations (UN) bodies, including the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture, the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, human rights treaty-monitoring bodies and the Human Rights Council, have called for full acknowledgment and substantive protection of the rights of children with intersex variations—as with all children—to bodily integrity and (future) bodily autonomy in relation to their own sexed embodiment. However, these global norms generally have not been codified under international law, and most countries have not passed adequate, or any, legislation to secure these rights. We review relevant global norms, international human rights treaties and legislative developments in a range of countries to illustrate potential pathways for closing legal gaps in the protection of all children’s rights to bodily integrity and (future) bodily and sexual autonomy. Keywords: bodily integrity; children’s rights; gender binary; non-voluntary medical interventions; human rights; intersex.
History
Publication status
- Published
File Version
- Published version
Journal
Amicus CuriaeISSN
1461-2097Publisher
School of Advanced StudyPublisher URL
External DOI
Issue
3Volume
5Page range
448-473Department affiliated with
- Anthropology Publications
Institution
University of SussexFull text available
- Yes
Peer reviewed?
- Yes