Conversion therapy law could harm young women and girls: UN expert

by James Kennedy

A new law on conversion therapy could harm young women and girls, warns a UN expert.

The Telegraph interviewed Reem Alsalem, who is the UN special rapporteur on violence against women and girls.

She explained that a conversion therapy law could promote the very abuse it is supposed to prevent. Young women and girls may have various reasons for saying they want to change gender, such as autism, she said.

When these girls turn to someone for help, a conversion therapy law could require that person to affirm a transgender identity, rather than probe more deeply. Discouraging ‘transition’ in favour of a longer period of reflection has been identified by several activists as exactly the sort of treatment they want to see criminalised.

This one-way path towards transition is described by the UN expert as being itself ‘conversion therapy’:

“By putting them on that high-speed train... you may inadvertently subject them to the conversion therapy you are trying to ban.”

The UN Special Rapporteur’s comments came the same day she spoke at a fringe event at the Labour Party conference. The event, hosted by ‘gender-critical’ group, Labour Women’s Declaration, looked at policy issues under the new Labour Government.  

The comments will be seen as a blow to the party, which committed itself to publishing a ‘draft conversion practices Bill’ this year. At the same time, it promised to “implement the expert recommendations of the Cass Review” and to tackle “violence against women and girls”.

Alsalem made clear these promises are not compatible. A ‘conversion therapy’ law runs counter to Cass, and is more likely to cause harm to women and girls than prevent it.

Many of us will be instinctively cautious about the comments of a UN 'expert'. One or two have been quoted in recent years in support of conversion therapy laws.

Too often, these 'equalities' posts are used to give a platform to one-sided agendas. Traditional views don't get a look in. Rarely are country-specific legal frameworks considered. Often, claims are quoted in misleading ways.

In this instance, Alsalem's comments are a helpful reminder there is no universal support for 'conversion therapy' laws.

In fact, many countries have not gone down this route. With a growing international awareness of the dangers of gender ideology, this strange movement has lost its momentum and may yet collapse.

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See also: Labour accused of ‘conversion therapy’: will it back off on a new law?