On Friday 2 October, Polish President Andrzej Duda vetoed the Gender Accordance Act, to the dismay of activists in Poland and all over Europe.

This was a prime opportunity for Poland to join their European counterparts, such as Malta and Ireland, who have improved gender recognition provisions in 2015.

ILGA-Europe had previously urged President Duda to sign the country’s first ever gender recognition law, which had the potential to clarify the gender recognition procedure for trans people in Poland.

The Act will now return to the Polish lower house and it is possible for the Sejm to override the presidential veto. If 3/5 of deputies (at least half the elected deputies must be present) vote in favour of the Act, then the president must sign it into law. ILGA-Europe are very disappointed but will continue to monitor the situation in Poland closely.

Source: www.ilga-europe.org