Dear Minister Nicholas Street,
Re: Request for meeting to discuss the recently released Report by Reem Alsalem United Nations Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls in sport
Women Speak Tasmania is an organization advocating for women’s sex based rights. We have received complaints about trans-identified males taking the place of women in 5 community sports including: soccer, netball, cycling, ten pin bowling and lawn bowls’.
Reem Alsalem, United Nations Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, recently released her Report of the Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, its causes and consequences – Violence against women and girls in sport.
In this report Reem has stated ‘female athletes are more vulnerable to sustaining serious physical injuries when female-only sports spaces are opened to males’.
In one study Reem reported “the least powerful man produced more power than the most powerful woman” and that where men and women have roughly the same levels of fitness, males’ average punching power has been measured as 162 per cent greater than females
Critical of the Olympics boxing events Reem’s report stated ‘at the 2024 Paris Olympics, female boxers had to compete against two boxers whose sex as females was seriously contested, but The International Olympic Committee refused to carry out a sex screening. Current technology enables a reliable sex screening procedure through a simple cheek swab that ensures non-invasiveness, confidentiality and dignity.’
The report also highlights the lost opportunities for females when men that identify as women are allowed to participate in women’s sports
‘So far over 600 female athletes in more than 400 competitions have lost more than 890 medals in 29 different sports’
We believe that everyone deserves the opportunity to participate in sports but not at the expense of safety and fairness for women.
Following release of Reem Alsalem’s Report, we would like to meet with you at your earliest opportunity to discuss the impacts that self sex ID has on women’s sports in Tasmania and how important it is to hold an immediate inquiry to review the impacts of sex self ID laws on fairness and safety for women in sport.
Yours Sincerely,
Dr. Elizabeth Caballero (retired)
Women Speak Tasmania