A bearded neo-Nazi in a women’s prison – even the 16 seasons of the popular German TV series Hinter Gittern – Der Frauenknast (Behind Bars – The Women’s Nick) didn’t manage to come up with that plotline.
Real life, as ever, trumps the scriptwriters, courtesy of the former Berlin government, whose clumsy attempt to reform gender identity law is backfiring in the most unexpected way.
In the lead role: Sven Liebich from Saxony-Anhalt. Distinguishing features: an 18-month prison sentence for incitement of hatred, cheering on Russia’s war in Ukraine, slander and a handful of other crimes.
The 54-year-old boasts a rewarding extremist career stretching back to the 1990s, when he was a leading figure in the neo-Nazi network Blood & Honour.
He is now formally a woman. Which is why news wires suddenly write about the convicted “Rechtsextremistin”, using the female ending, although when in court, Sven Liebich hadn’t yet rebranded himself Marla-Svenja.
When he did, it was pure provocation at the expense of those who genuinely wrestle with tension between body and gender identity. Like the vast majority of his ideological ilk, Liebich has issues with queerness, to put it mildly.
However, the Self-Determination Law makes misgendering a punishable offence, with fines of up to £8,700. So despite Liebich’s blatant mockery of the law, many media outlets comply.
This Friday, the convicted extremist is due to report to the women’s prison in Chemnitz. Fortunately, prison officials have had the good sense to examine Liebich’s motivations. They are already considering moving the prisoner to a men’s facility – the odds look decent.
Of course, neo-Nazis can be trans, too. In theory. In practice, though, Liebich has been on record calling Pride participants in Halle “parasites of society” and railing against “trans-fascism”. That was, of course, before the sex-change-on-paper.
In short: legislators are being ridiculed by a trans-hater bathing in media attention. And this fiasco lies squarely at the feet of the former traffic-light coalition. Careless at best, cowardly at worst.
Until their reforms came into effect in November 2024, a legal gender change required two psychiatric assessments and a family-court ruling. Those affected had long criticised the process as humiliating, drawn out and expensive – costing up to £1,700.
Suggested Reading
The ex-Nazis who got away with their past
Change was needed. But instead of crafting a thoughtful one, addressing this highly complex and sensitive issue, the government chose the easy road: all you need now is a self-declaration at the registry office. No barriers. Unless you’re a minor, in which case you need parental or court consent, you’re just a signature away from a new gender.
The government expected 4,000 gender changes a year. Yet in the first two months alone, more than 10,000 cases were recorded. No one knows whether this surge reflects long-waiting trans people finally able to act, or opportunists taking advantage of a system that’s easy to game.
It was a well-meaning approach. But also one that ignored equally well-intentioned warnings from medical associations, child psychiatrists and feminist groups.
“Why would anyone abuse it?” supporters asked, in touching naivety. Then-family minister Lisa Paus of the Greens declared there was “no further need for discussion” when asked about women’s safety in single-sex changing rooms. Because, quote, “trans women are women”.
End of discussion, and a bow to the radical activist wing of the trans movement – those who presume to speak for everyone with gender dysphoria. Voice a doubt, raise a concern, and you run the risk of being instantly branded “transphobic”.
Why the former government didn’t trouble to look abroad and consider practices (and consequences) from other European countries is beyond me. The new government, thanks to the farce around Liebich, may yet inject some common sense into the law.
The Conservative interior minister, Alexander Dobrindt, has vowed to make it watertight against abuse, arguing that Liebich is taking “the justice system, the public and politics for a ride, because the Self-ID law makes it possible.” Family minister Karin Prien, a Christian Democrat, points to a joint coalition review of the Self-ID reform pencilled in by July 31 2026 at the latest.
It would be a great signal to speed things up a bit, because Liebich won’t be the last.
