I never thought of human rights as high on the agenda for Thailand, but they have surprised me by making a change to their laws which will make life for Thai kathoeys much easier.

Under Thai law all males are required to report for the draft when they turn 21.  If they voluntarily enlist Thai males must serve between six to eighteen months depending on their education and if they are drafted they must serve for 24 months.

Under their current draft system ladyboys have been rejected for suffering from a mental disorder.  This has made life much harder than necessary because in Thailand men are required to prove that they have completed their national service when applying for jobs or bank loans.  Once they show their military rejection forms they are automatically disqualified from many jobs and loans.

A senior officer in the Royal Thai Armed Services said Wednesday that they will be creating a new category for military service to categorize draftees as neither male nor female.  And they will cease using the mental disorder rejection for kathoeys immediately.

While the military tries to find a new word for this new category ladyboy conscripts will be turned away and given a form that states they have an illness that cannot be cured within 30 days.

To qualify for the third category, transsexuals will have to report for the draft for three years in a row to prove they are really trying to live as women.

This should open up many avenues of opportunity for the Thai ladyboys who will now be able to get better jobs as well as bank loans to finance such things as cars and houses.  I congratulate the Thai military for their open minded stance on Thailand’s ladyboys.

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