47 percent of Pinoys do not want transgender women to use female toilet —SWS

At least 47 percent of Filipinos are opposed to allowing transgender women to use the female toilet, a Social Weather Stations (SWS) survey showed on Wednesday.

In a poll conducted last September 27 to 30, SWS revealed that only 32 percent favored allowing transgender women to use the female toilet, while eight percent is undecided.

A slightly higher 48 percent also disagreed that transgenders should be allowed to change their official documents such as a birth certificate and driver’s license according to their identity as against 22 percent who agreed.

On the other hand, 56 percent do not believe that being a transgender is not a mental illness, while only 19 percent believe otherwise.

A lower percentage of 25 percent also believe that transgenders are committing a sin, while 36 percent are convinced they are not.

The survey was done on 1,800 respondents nationwide, with a nationwide margin of error of two percent.

In August, 28-year-old transgender woman Gretchen Diez was banned from using a women's comfort room in a Quezon City mall and was handcuffed en route to the police station by the mall security.

The incident has sparked renewed calls for the passage of the Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity and Expression (SOGIE) Equality Bill—a measure that is still languishing in Congress. —LDF, GMA News