We are working for a world where everyone knows that intersex people exist, where gender is understood as a process, where intersex people can live in freedom and equality, and where mutilation and ‘normalization’ practices are abolished.

We interviewed OII Europe board member and intersex activist Irene Kuzemko about her life and the agenda of intersex activists in the EU and Eastern Europe. A Russian-Ukrainian, Kuzemko founded Intersex Russia in 2017 and has been instrumental in building the intersex movement in the country.

Kuzemko is a board member of OII Europe, the umbrella organization of Intersex Turkey, and has made countless contributions to intersex activism in Turkey.

Could you briefly introduce yourself for Turkish readers who don’t know you?

I am Irene Kuzemko, 27 years old, from Russia and Ukraine. I have been involved in intersex activism since 2015, the year I discovered I am intersex. In 2016 I joined interACT Youth, in 2017 I founded Intersex Russia and in 2018 I joined the board of OII Europe.

What was your education life like as an intersex student?

For me, the teenage years were when my intersex variation started to become apparent. When I was 14-15 years old, although I had signs of high testosterone, such as acne and some upper lip hair, I didn’t have periods and no breast development. At that time I struggled a lot with my self-confidence, feeling that I was worse than everyone else, thinking that “I wasn’t girl enough.” The doctors back home in Ukraine couldn’t answer what was happening to me, and this lack of explanation made everything even more difficult. It was a very bitter time when I hated myself. I was suicidal, depressed and felt very alone in my experience.

I am incredibly lucky that I was never teased at school and university for being different and not developing like other girls. If I had been teased I don’t think I would have been able to handle it back then, it was already very difficult.

What were your family relationships like as an intersex person?

My mom and grandmother laughed at my worries at first and said, “Just wait, everything will happen! Most of the women in our family are late bloomers!” Years went by and I still hadn’t hit puberty. The only advice from my doctors was to wait and every time I went home with tears in my eyes. I waited for years and nothing was happening!

When I was 15, I remember a time when a distant relative came to visit us. He hadn’t seen me since I was 3-5 years old. When he walked into our house and saw me, he didn’t even greet me, he walked in, looked at me and said directly, “So where are our breasts?” I still remember the anger I felt at that moment and it still hurts.

Then my father and I went to the doctors in Moscow, and after they did all the tests, the doctors never spoke to me. They invited my father into their office, closed the door and only talked to him. I was waiting in the hallway, and when one of my doctors walked past me, they walked so fast that I couldn’t even say hello to them.

Just before I turned 22, I finally discovered I was intersex. When I asked my father why he kept telling me “I thought you always knew”, he admitted that he had deliberately kept everything from me, not at the time, but later on. “Two child psychologists advised me to do this,” he said.

Even though I told him that he had ruined my life, he said he had done everything right and would not apologize. That was the last time I spoke to my father, I deleted him from my life right then and there. I haven’t seen or spoken to him since.

My mom discovered that I was intersex at the same time. So she wasn’t told the truth either. It was a big shock for her, but over time she learned to accept it and now she is very supportive of my activism.

What is your country’s attitude towards LGBTIQA+ people?

Russia and Ukraine, unfortunately, cannot be called LGBTQ+ friendly. In Russia there is a law on “gay propaganda” and there are many cases of human rights violations, very strong homophobia and transphobia.

In terms of intersex rights, Russia is no different from most countries in the world, with routine non-life-saving surgeries on intersex children and intersex human rights violations. Some doctors here even talk in the media about how proud they are to perform such operations.

The Russian intersex movement started in 2013. At that time, there was almost no information about intersex in Russian and most people in our country who don’t speak English couldn’t access information about the intersex movement, the existence of intersex people and intersex human rights. Now, almost 8 years later, there is much more information. There is a growing community from all over the country, there are various organizations and intersex people in public. But still, in terms of public awareness, I would say that we are still behind countries where the intersex movement started earlier, for example in the 90s.

How do you identify yourself, especially in terms of gender?

I am an intersex woman and I use the pronouns “she/her”. I like being intersex, it is part of my identity and I am proud of it and I also identify as a girl and I like to look feminine.

How do you see European politics today and what is the place of intersex activism?

In recent years we have seen a continuous growth of the European intersex community, with more and more amazing organizations emerging in different countries and more and more activists doing great work.

The work of intersex activists in particular has made a lot of recent achievements possible.

*The Malta Gender Identity, Gender Expression and Sex Characteristics Act 2015 and similar resolutions and laws proposed and sometimes adopted in other European countries

*CoE Commissioner for Human Rights Document on Intersex

*Fundamental Rights Institution Intersex Focus Document

*Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe Intersex Resolution

*European Parliament’s Intersex Resolution

*Recommendations of UN committees: CRC, CAT, CESCR, CEDAW, CCPR, CRPD, UPR.

and others.

In recent years many activists at community level have created joint declarations about their goals and demands, such as the European Vienna Declaration or the regional Moscow declaration, both of which I was lucky enough to be part of the creation of. And of course OII Europe continues to work with each of our community events and conferences, bringing more and more people into the community.

So we are definitely seeing a growing awareness of intersex rights in Europe in recent years, we are seeing the intersex movement growing and new organizations being created and new activists speaking out. We see that many international human rights organizations now recognize intersex human rights and that Intersex Genital Mutilation (IGM) is now recognized as a harmful practice at the UN level. However, intersex rights are still being violated in many countries in Europe and there is still much work to be done to make sure this stops.

What are the aims and objectives of OII Europe?

OII Europe is an umbrella organization of European human rights-based intersex organizations working to promote self-awareness, visibility and recognition of intersex people in Europe and worldwide. Currently, OII Europe has member organizations in all Council of Europe sub-regions.

OII Europe was established as a network in Stockholm during the 2nd International Intersex Forum on Human Rights Day, 10 December 2012. On 25 September 2015, OII Europe became a registered non-profit non-governmental organization in Berlin.

OII Europe works to create a world where everyone knows that intersex people exist, where gender is understood as a process, where intersex people can live in freedom and equality, where disabling and ‘normalizing’ practices are abolished, where there are safe and celebratory environments for intersex people and their families, and where diversity is celebrated in terms of gender, sexual identity, physical and mental conditions, ethnic backgrounds, spiritual and religious backgrounds and all other aspects that are part of being human in this world.

You can find more information in the OII European Strategic Plan 2019 – 2022 and on our website.

What would you like to say/advise to LGBTIQA+ people in Turkey?

I would say that they are not alone. You have human rights, you deserve love and respect.

If you are intersex, please know that there is a growing intersex community all over the world. If you contact Intersex Turkey and/or OII Europe we would be very happy to meet you and support you. Sending love and hugs!