Iran pays for sex-change operations

[mr_anderson]

Just to balance out many of the articles regarding/condeming Arab and Islamic countries.

Iran authorized such operations in 1984 under a decree issued by the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. The government considers transsexuals to be people who are ``trapped'' in a body of the wrong sex, says Mohammad Mehdi Kariminia, a cleric who wrote a thesis on the rights and duties of transsexuals.

Lets put this in perspective.
In 1984, at a time when Ireland was still opposed to divorce, Iran was authorising sex-change operations.
Have no fear though, homosexuality is still a capital offence.

[size=7]http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?p...8hA&refer=home[/size]

[905]

Quite frankly I'm a little concerned that they base legislation on clerical writings. This could easily have gone the other way. An exception to the general rule of craziness.

Have ye ever read 'Iran Awakening' by the nobel laureate Shirin Ebadi? Dealing with the period in question, it reminded me of Orwell's '1984'.

[UnitedIreland]

so? they have different values to us. big deal

[TheBear]

<Mod>Please don't post thread titles in block capitals. It's rude.</Mod>

[mr_anderson]

<Mod>Please don't post thread titles in block capitals. It's rude.</Mod>

Oops, sorry.

[The Collective.]

Interesting. Muslims have a strange attitude to transgendered people. The Taliban(spelling?) apparently have a transgendered wing.

[rockofcashel]

B'stards.. how dare they respect diversity.. more proof of Musli-Islamo-Nazi-Facismism

[TradCat]

If you have a sex change in Saudi Arabia do you lose your driving licence?

[rockofcashel]

If you have a sex change in Saudi Arabia do you lose your driving licence?

You lose more than your license

[madura]

Interesting. Muslims have a strange attitude to transgendered people. The Taliban(spelling?) apparently have a transgendered wing.

Are you saying they're actually favourable towards male-to-female translations? Given their appalling attitude towards women?