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The Joint Committee of Congress unanimously approved an amendment to the Gender Identity Law stipulating that a change of legal name and gender will automatically dissolve a marriage. It also establishes that such cases will be processed through a family court.

LGBT organizations condemned the measure, which they consider a setback, and did not rule out appealing to the Constitutional Court. “This decision is regrettable because it means that when a trans person recovers their identity through the recognition of their gender, they will lose their family identity through the termination of their marriage, even against the will of their partner. This once again violates people's identity,” said Juan Enrique Pi, president of Fundación Iguales, in statements to the media.

[READ ALSO: #Chile The new government removed the “urgency” status from the Gender Identity Bill]

The measure stipulates that people who have a marital bond and carry out the legal procedure will have the effect of dissolving the marriage, even against the will of the couple.

Regrettable: The joint committee for the gender identity bill approved a measure requiring married transgender people who wish to change their name and legal gender to dissolve their marriage. https://t.co/6AXgstu28q pic.twitter.com/QbvA5YbHRv

— Fundación Iguales (@IgualesChile) July 18, 2018

Regressive: Married people will be required to dissolve their marriage to legally change their name and gender / Current legislation does not require this. The Gender Identity Law should expand rights, not curtail existing ones! https://t.co/FuSCxTxxu7 pic.twitter.com/riYo3trCam

— Movilh Chile (@Movilh) July 19, 2018

From MOVILH Chile, they stated that the measure also "constitutes an illegitimate invasion of people's private lives, because they will be forced to end their marriage even if they wish to remain married. We believe this measure violates the Constitution and we do not rule out appealing to the Comptroller General of the Republic or the Constitutional Court," said MOVILH spokesperson Oscar Rementería.

[READ ALSO: Gender identity law in Chile: children included again]

The provision states that people who have a marital bond and carry out the legal procedure will have the effect of dissolving the marriage, even against the will of the couple.

The Gender Identity Bill, which was presented on May 7, 2013, by Senators Lily Pérez, Ximena Rincón, Camilo Escalona, ​​Ricardo Lagos Weber and Juan Pablo Letelier, received more than 200 amendments.