A "do no harm approach" should be taken when debating transgender rights, says Green MP Jan Logie.
On TVNZ1's Q+A, host Corin Dann asked about the debate in New Zealand around the ability for transgender women to declare themselves as women. "It's upset some women, it's a very complex area," Dann said.
The Under Secretary for Domestic and Sexual Violence said she found the debate "really sad".
"This is the most marginalised community in our country [with] really high rates of self-harm and suicide."
"Take a do no harm approach. We've got to make sure we are not persecuting or undermining people’s existence through our exploration of ideas."
She said the Human Rights Commission "found conclusively that being trans was not a lifestyle choice".
"It was a natural part of human diversity. We've had non-binary identities from the beginning of time."
"My concern is and I would say to people who are looking to question if they don’t understand the realities of human diversity then go and do some reading and some research."
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