An Army Captain from Australia would soon change his name from Captain Matthew Clinch to Bridget Clinch after undergoing a gender assignment surgery. The expenses of the procedure would be partly borne by the Medical Care Fund of the Defense Forces.

While talking to the Seven's Sunday Night Show, the army personnel said that after the undergoing the operation no one will be able to distinguish him from any other normal woman. The Captain, who has previously served in East Timor, has come under sharp criticism from his mother.

The reason why Captain Clinch is being operated upon is because he is suffering from a condition known as gender disphoria, which has a 20% suicide rate among sufferers. The procedure that would be performed on Captain Clinch can very well save him from the suicidal tendencies that come along with this condition.

While talking about the Government's decision to direct the taxpayer's money towards the operation, the Information and Resources Worker, Gender Centre, Katherine Cummings stated that the decision to provide the service was out of the need of medical care for the person. The surgery would involve a funding of $10,000 upwards.

It needs to be noted that around 200 Australians had undergone a gender reassignment surgery in the previous year.