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The Health Ministry issued a circular on Monday formalizing the country's ban on conversion therapy, intended to change a person's sexual orientation or gender identity, as well as listing sanctions that will be imposed on medical professionals that engage in the controversial practice.
Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz — himself part of the LGBTQ community — lauded the move to prohibit the practice, which aims to "correct” a person's sexuality via what some professionals have deemed as "mental and physical torture."
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Marcher flies the LGBT pride flag during a Gay Pride Parade in Tel Aviv
(Photo: Tommy Harpaz)
"No one needs conversion. Not lesbians, not gays, not trans people, not straights. Sexual orientation and gender identity is not a problem that needs to be solved and if someone needs conversion, it's the people full of hate for others," Horowitz said.
"This practice is a murder of the mind and sometimes of the body. It leads to the suicide and death of more and more members of the gay community whose sole sin is being who they are."
Health Ministry Director-General Prof. Nachman Ash also welcomed the announcement, stating that healthcare professionals have long opposed the practice.
While some LGBT groups and individuals commended the move, others considered it to have little to no significance in practice and opted to criticize Horowitz for not enacting a more stringent policy.
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Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz speaks at the 2021 Gay Pride Parade in Tel Aviv
(Photo: Moti Kimchi)
"Eradication of conversion therapies is a moral, crucial and necessary act in today's reality where these horrific treatments are still ongoing," said Chen Arieli, former chairman of the LGBT Association and current deputy mayor of Tel Aviv — which hosts the world's largest annual Gay Pride Parade.
"But the statement has relatively little significance in relation to other things that can be done under the authority of the minister."