China Man Awaiting Sex Surgery Sues Hospital Over Electric Shock Therapy

A man in China who was waiting for sex reassignment surgery has filed an 80,000 yuan (Rs 9.4 lakh approximately) lawsuit against a hospital, claiming he was coerced into receiving electroshock treatment, as per a report in South China Morning Post. The 27-year-old is a live-streamer from the northern Chinese province of Hebei and posts videos of himself donning women's clothes and makeup. The man said that he received electric shocks for several days while being forced into a hospital for 97 days.

Despite being born a male, he informed Hongxing News that he identifies as a woman. The social media star started taking oestrogen, one of the main female sex hormones. As a result, he developed long hair, lost facial hair, and softened his voice. He claims that he has been putting aside the money he earned from live-streaming in the hopes of undergoing surgery to change his gender.

However, Linger's parents disapproved of his choice. Since the Chinese traditionally believe that a person's body is a gift from their parents and that a person's gender should not be changed, they were unable to accept their son's gender transition, which caused several disputes within the family. Notably, in China, having a sex change procedure is viewed as disrespectful to parents.

Linger told Hongxing News that he agreed to visit a hospital in 2022 to avoid any other conflicts. Although he was aware that the facility was for psychiatric patients, he did not believe he was mentally ill. A doctor there diagnosed him with "anxiety disorder" and "ego-dystonic sexual orientation," a mental illness characterising a conflict between a person's intended and real sexual orientation. Soon after, the medical personnel took away his phone and forced him to stay in the hospital for 97 days. "After being admitted to the hospital, I was tied to the bed with ropes, and many doctors controlled my body and administered electroshock therapy for days," Linger said.

He sued the hospital for violating his human rights, requesting 80,000 yuan in damages. However, on August 13, Jiulongshan Hospital said during the hearing that they had "done nothing wrong" and the shocks were given to control the emotions to enhance the self-awareness of psychiatric patients.

According to the hospital, Linger's mother signed a consent form. The legal case is still being heard in court.