The ministers of the General Secretariat of the Presidency of the Republic, Márcio Macêdo; of Human Rights and Citizenship, Sílvio Almeida; of Racial Equality, Anielle Franco; and the president of Embratur, Marcelo Freixo, met in Lisbon this Sunday (23/4/23) with representatives of social movements from Brazilian communities in Portugal and various locations across Europe.
Among the representatives of social movements, Freda Paranhos, president of TransParadise, representing migrant travestis in Portugal, discussed the difficulties of entering the job market, the daily exposure to violence, and the agenda for using the chosen name on residence-permit documents, as well as changing name and gender on official documents for the trans migrant population.
These changes were, until then, only possible by returning to Brazil. One of TransParadise’s struggles in advocating for the rights of the trans migrant population was precisely the correction of name and/or gender on official documents — something that, until that moment, could only be done by returning to Brazil for an in-person correction or by appointing a legal representative. Both options were financially incompatible with the reality of a significant portion of the population and also posed security concerns for individuals in asylum situations.
In April 2023, during the visit of the Brazilian presidential delegation to Portugal, we presented this demand to the Minister of Human Rights, Sílvio de Almeida, who committed to supporting it.