The fact that there are no clear procedures on how to change school records following
gender reassignment is extremely problematic and will impact an individual’s ability
to gain employment or other pursuits that require educational documentation as a
prerequisite.
Marital rights
At present, Chinese law does not contain any specific provisions regarding the ability
of transgender persons to marry, nor does it place any articulated restrictions on this
right.237 Transgender people do, however, need to conform to legal stipulations in order
to register for marriage. This includes completing SRS (possessing the physiological
characteristics of the other sex) and the alteration of the gender on the person’s hukou
and ID card (i.e., acquiring legal gender).238 China has not legalized same-sex marriage
and defines marriage as a union between a man and a woman.239
In actual practice, there have been instances of transgender people who have
undergone SRS marrying in China. In 2008, a Sichuan native named Zhang Lin
married her boyfriend, Yang Qicheng, after undergoing SRS.240 A small survey among
transgender people in China showed that of 108 who underwent SRS under one expert
in the field, 54 have since married.241
International Framework
Transgender individuals live with heavy stigma directed against their person, their
lifestyle, often their chosen profession and their chosen identity. They are routinely
marginalized and suffer from severe prejudice and violence.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), adopted by the UN General
Assembly in 1948, is a foundational human rights document that spurred the
promulgation of a series of international human rights laws. The Declaration emphasizes
the universality and indivisibility of human rights for all and offers specific protections,
particularly on non-discrimination. As a United Nations member state, China has
accepted the UDHR, whose provisions are broadly accepted to be international
customary law.
237 Ibid.
238 Ibid.
239 Zhang Yingxiu. Research on the Marriage System. [结婚制度研究] (Shandong University Press, 2009): 54.
240 Song Linfeng. “The atypical four-year marriage of