Feel strongly about these letters, or any other aspects of the news? Share your views by emailing us your Letter to the Editor at letters@scmp.com or filling in this Google form . Submissions should not exceed 400 words, and must include your full name and address, plus a phone number for verification. The Court of Final Appeal ruled that the commissioner of registration’s policy which insists upon “full sex reassignment surgery” before a “female to male transgender person” is permitted an amendment to the gender marker on their identity card violates the appellants’ rights under Article 14 of the Bill of Rights and is unconstitutional. The general public may be curious about the role of “sex reassignment surgery” – or “gender affirming surgery”, the term many transgender people prefer – in the lives of transgender people. Some transgender people do see gender affirming surgery as vitally important and undertake gender affirming surgeries with different levels of intrusiveness and risk. However, not all transgender people would like to undergo gender affirming surgery or they may have concerns about the surgery. A study of 234 Hong Kong transgender people – the largest-scale study on Hong Kong’s transgender population – that I conducted in 2019-2020 in collaboration with Transgender Resource Centre showed that 28.4 per cent of the participants had received or were receiving hormone treatment, 31 per cent wanted it someday, 14.7 per cent were not sure, and 25.9 per cent did not want it. Among the 93 participants assigned male at birth, 9.7 per cent had undergone or were having facial feminisation surgery, 8.8 per cent had undergone or were having top/chest/breast surgery, 13 per cent had undergone or were having an orchidectomy (removal of testes), and 13 per cent had undergone or were having genital surgery. While 40 per cent of them wanted to have some feminising surgeries someday, 19.6 to 29.7 per cent said they were not sure, and 24.7 to 29.3 per cent said they did not want to undergo the surgeries. Among the 141 participants assigned female at birth, 46.8 per cent wanted to have top/chest/breast surgery and 36.9 per cent wanted to have a hysterectomy. While 14.2 per cent had undertaken or were having top/chest/breast surgery, only 2.8 per cent, 0.7 per cent and none of them had undertaken or were having a hysterectomy, genital surgery and phalloplasty (creation of a penis) respectively, while 36.9 per cent, 46.8 per cent and 52.5 per cent did not want a hysterectomy, genital surgery or phalloplasty respectively. While 43.2 per cent of the respondents indicated financial reasons as a barrier to having such surgeries, 40.6 per cent had reservations about surgical risks and/or techniques, and 29.9 per cent said they were not ready for the medical procedures. Long waiting time (20.5 per cent), opposition from parents (26.1 per cent) and the need to fulfil family responsibilities (17.9 per cent) were factors that hindered their intention to undergo gender-affirming medical interventions. It is worth noting that 27.8 per cent believed medical procedures were not important to them. For transgender people, self-identified gender and gender identity may be related to but not entirely dependent on their biological body. Yiu-tung Suen, associate professor, Gender Studies programme, Chinese University of Hong Kong Gender identity should not be forced on people The report , “How an AI photo app is helping some trans people embrace themselves” (December 21), shed light on some of the difficulties transgender people face. The gender binary construct draws a solid boundary between male and female. The binary offers a strong sense of identity, making the world easier to navigate. However, this clear-cut boundary is torture to people who suffer from gender dysphoria or a mismatch. Some transgender people have found affirmation in the stylised images the app Lensa creates based on photographs, although the app has also been criticised for conforming to feminine stereotypes. While technology offers some solace, society should not force people into an identity they are not comfortable with. Transgender people face discrimination in their daily lives and in the workplace. Apart from the financial barriers to seeking medical care for gender transitions, they also struggle to find sympathetic doctors. The government should lower the threshold for recognising people’s affirmed gender. Venus Ng, Tseung Kwan O