Activists Take To Cardiff To Protest UK Government Refusal To Ban Trans Conversion Therapy

Members of Wales’ trans community have taken to the center of Cardiff to protest the UK government’s refusal to legislate to ban trans conversion therapy.

Gathering outside the home of the UK government in Cardiff, Ty William Morgan House, on Tuesday, April 16, protesters called on the government to U-turn on its decision not to include trans conversion therapy in a ban on the practice.

The ban now set to be brought forward in next month's Queen's Speech will cover “only gay conversion therapy, not trans." The decision has angered trans people and their allies across the UK.

Shash Appan was subjected to a form of conversion therapy when her family took her to India in an attempt to isolate her after coming out, ITV writes.

Shash, who went on to co-found Trans Aid Cymru, a mutual aid organization that supports trans and nonbinary people, told ITV Wales: “[My family] didn’t allow me to express the gender I wanted, I was forced to present as male.

“We have laws around trafficking when forced marriage is an issue, but this ban could have prevented a situation like mine. I could have gone to staff at the airport, but I couldn’t do anything. To them it wasn’t illegal.”

The UK government initially announced that ministers were scrapping plans to ban the practice all together.

However, following a furious backlash, it announced legislation would be put forward, albeit excluding trans conversion therapy.