O STJ (Superior Court of Justice) unanimously decided, this Wednesday (12), that military personnel cannot be removed from their duties just for identifying themselves as transgender people or because they are in the process of gender transition.
The decision has general repercussions, meaning that it applies as a rule for all similar cases across the country. In other words, judges and lower court courts need to follow this understanding when judging similar situations.
The determination responds to an action by the DPU (Union Public Defender’s Office)which denounced discriminatory practices against , especially in the Armed Forces.
According to the DPU, military personnel were forced to take medical leave or retire compulsorily due to their gender identities.
In a previous decision, the TRF-2 (Federal Regional Court of the 2nd Region) had already determined that the Armed Forces recognize the social name of transgender soldiers and refrain from removing them from their duties.
The Union appealed to the STJ, arguing that entry into the Navy, Army and Air Force occurs according to gender, and that departures would be motivated by health treatment needs, based on medical examinations that indicated psychological suffering, with no direct relationship with transsexuality.
The case’s rapporteur, Minister Teodoro da Silva Santos, rejected the Union’s arguments. “The condition of a transgender person or the process of gender transition does not, in itself, constitute incapacity or illness for the purposes of military service”, stated the minister.
The STJ concluded that the initiation of a compulsory reform or licensing process based exclusively on the soldier’s gender identity is prohibited, fully maintaining the understanding of the TRF-2.
