♪ brent: this is "dw news," live from berlin. tonight, it's a boy, it's a girl, or neither nor. a landmark court ruling means that germany could become the first european country to offer a third gender on birth certificates. it is being called a small revolution with the court saying today's binary gender choices discriminate against intersex people. also coming up, in the u.s., voters elected the first openly transgender politician. in virginia, democrat danica roem ousted april trump incumbent -- a pro-trunk

incumbent republican. -- pro-trump incumbent republican. and will the latest mass league of financial papers lead to a crackdown on tax havens? we will have an exclusive interview with the european union's tax chief, pierre moscovici. ♪ brent: i am brent goff. it is good to have you with us. germany could become the first european country to allow for a third gender on birth certificates. the country's top court today ruled that present laws discriminate against intersex people. those are people who have a mixture of male and female sexual traits. the court said official documents should either recognize a third gender or remove gender altogether.

the change from binary gender choices to three choices is scheduled to take effect next year. reporter: vanja can hardly believe it. the years of fighting for a third gender have finally been rewarded. >> there are lots of places in society where there is a split between the sexes. so i have to ask myself again and again, how do i define myself? do i try to fit in, or do i trust myself not to do so, and how are people going to react? reporter: it is an issue that directly affects vanja and around 160,000 other intersex people in germany, people who were born with male and female features into his gender cannot be identified. that is where the problem starts. so far it has only been possible to enter ale or female on the birth register or leave it open. vanja has campaigned for a third gender like inter or diverse. the court has opened the door to

that although they have left the exact description open. >> basic personal rights also protect the basic identity of those people who do not identify as male or female. the current law infringes on the prohibition of discrimination because it is not possible to enter anything other than male or female. reporter: the court has given lawmakers until the end of december, 2018 to draft new rules. brent: how many transgender, how many intersex people do you know? if you have never met and him -- met an openly intersex person the only time might be through the media. like tv or literature. our next guest won the pulitzer prize for his book "middlesex,"

which were the first time gave high drug treatment for a topic that became part of american pop culture. i'm happy to welcome to the show jeffrey eugenides. he joins us today from princeton university in the u.s. where he treats his -- pieces -- where he teaches creative writing. it what do you think they stun your time here in berlin, would you think it is about germany that made today's ruling possible? jeffrey: what is it about germany? i don't know. i think there is a fair amount of free thinking over there. when i wrote "middlesex," right upstairs was th a sex shop. there was a fair amount of study and thought going into what constitutes gender and different

variations about it. i think this is something that you can trace back in germany to the 1920's, investigations, analysis of gender and sexuality, trying to figure out, trying to understand how we can deal with it as a society. i would say that is probably why it is emerging in germany before some other countries. brent: and when we are talking about this issue, gender variance, not be forced to choose -- being forced to choose male or female, we see in the u.s. that it can be politicized very quickly. just look at the controversial bathroom law in north carolina. how would you characterize the environment in the u.s. where you are compared to germany, when we are talking about this notion of intersex identity? jeffrey: well, i think you see

in almost all of our cultural issues in america, a great divide. strange gender rights, -- transgender rights have advanced a great deal in the u.s. as have gay marriage and other issues relating to sexuality. at the same time, when there are advances there are push backs, and you are seeing that in some other states in america. it is kind of a push poll that is going on here. -- push and pull going on here. america is always characterized as a certain amount of advancement then entrenchment. i assume you have the same force is going on in germany. i know there is some opposition from certain quarters, when of them being the catholic church in germany. so you can imagine what it is like in america, it is just an

exaggerated form of probably discussion you're having a germany. brent: i want to talk a little bit about your book, "middlesex ." it dealt with a hermaphrodite. for our viewers out there who are maybe not familiar with that, we're talking about a person who may have the sexual organs of both a man and a woman. and you write in the book about the struggles of that person. would you say, though, that the world in which you wrote "middlesex" in compared to today, would you say that those are two different worlds? would you be able to write "middlesex," the way you did back then, the same today? jeffrey: first of all you are talking about an actual living person i would only use the term intersex. hermaphrodite is really only used in literature for a

mythical creature. it is not the preferred term for anyone who has an ambiguous or indeterminate gender. i wrote the book and it came out in 2002 and has been part of this discussion, if not initiating some of it. would i write the book again today? i do not usually write about things after they have become current. i tried to get ahead of the ball in that way. i do not think i would write a book now because you have seen so much about the topic come out. it would be less original, less fresh, and in a certain way there would be less need for me to write it. i don't think i would write it in a different way because nothing has changed in terms of what is in the book. the book is a story about one intersection of -- one individuals life and his parents immigrated to america.

there would be no need to change the book. but i am very surprised at how quickly the issue has become in the mainstream. when "middlesex" came out i used to have to explain the concept of gender identity to audiences. i spoke to -- people do not even understand that gender could be different than one's biological sex. that it was not binary was an idea a lot of people had not considered before. so things have changed quite rapidly since the book came out. there was a lot of resistance in 2002 when the book came out and a lot of people did not want to read it. they thought it was some kind of story about a freak or something like that. so i am happy that it contributed to a greater understanding of what these people are like and what they go through. i can only be happy to see it

has started to have political ramifications. brent: i want to ask you before we run out of time, you have been quoted as saying they really can be no other form to describe what people are thinking as well as a novel can. i'm going to ask you to brainstorm for a second here with us. describe the novel you think that could be inspired by the events that happened today, this court ruling in germany. is there a novel that could come out of that? jeffrey: there's possibly a novel that could come out of it. it won't be mine idle -- my novel. perhaps you could write a story from the point of view from someone in germany to his intersex, who is fighting for this change to the designation. i don't know. there are as many stories about intersex people as there are about regular people.

each story would be different. i have always approached the topic not in an analytical way or in a stereotypical way. i think each person is different, each person's story is going to be different, and i would not try to encapsulate everyone's experience, intersex or not, in a novel. there's no sense in generalizing about the particulars -- particularly's of people's lives. brent: jeffrey eugenides joining us tonight from princeton. thank you very much. we appreciate your time tonight. jeffrey: thank you. brent: in the united states, democrats are celebrating victories in several closely watched state and local elections. a year into donald trump's presidency the polls are being seen as a test of voter opinion. trump's republican party was set

back majorly in virginia where democrat ralph northam has been elected governor. he netted a decisive victory over republican ed gillespie who had attacked him on divisive issues like immigration, crime, and confederate statues. the democrats also won the race for governor in new jersey and scored well in local elections scattered across the country. among the democratic victors in those regional elections is said to become the country's first openly transgender state legislator. danica roem is a 32-year-old journalist in virginia, where she ousted a pro-trump incumbent. take a look. reporter: danica roem celebrating a historic victory in virginia. not only issue the first openly transgender person elected to a u.s. state legislator -- legislature, she defeated a staunchly conservative

republican. bob marshall introduced legislation which saw to restrict afterwards the transgendered could use. but it was roem who came out on top. >> i am a transgender woman. we won because i am a transgender woman. because of my identifiers, not despite them. i championed them. roereporter: one of roem's campn as showed her putting on makeup and taking hormone pills. but it was not the focus of her campaign. instead she saw votes with ideas on how to solve local infrastructure issues. >> traffic congestion does not care what your gender is. it does not care what your sexuality is. it does not care what your races. it does not care how old you are. it hates everyone. it is traffic congestion.

everyone gets stuck in it. reporter: roem has at times seemed frustrated by the amount of time focus on her gender identity. >> it should not be a revolutionary act to say this is who i am, this is why i am well-qualified for office as a longtime local reporter and a lifelong resident of the district i'm running to represent. it should not be represented he do have to say, and i am transgender. reporter: once the celebrations are over, the hard work of office begins. roem wants to make virginia more inclusive but not before she has sorted out that traffic congestion. brent: good luck with the traffic in northern virginia. there is new outrage over tax avoidance following those recent paradise papers. now the eu top politicians are pushing for mothers -- to measures to stop it. daniel: it has been a long time coming. the year commissioner -- eu

commissioner pierre moscovici says members states will do much more to fight tax havens. top priority is the creation of a blacklist to name and shame jurisdictions that cater to wealthy firms and individuals. yet the eu has been working for two years on similar measures with limited success. consensus remains a challenge among members with low tax rates of their own. joining me now is the man himself, use commissioner for economic and financial affairs, pierre moscovici. thank you very much for coming in. you have sent the eu must seize the opportunity to make a credible blacklist taxation. what counts as a tax haven? pierre: first, a country that does not respect -- second, a country which does not

have automatic exchange of information. or simply on personal accounts. third, a country which has a zero tax rate as far as -- daniel: daniel but that is a vey high bar. some would look to britain -- pierre: no member state is a tax haven if you look at those criteria. daniel: the british crown dependency has a zero -- pierre: i'm talking about something different. the u.k. is not a tax haven. on the contrary, it is a very prominent -- but there are some crown dependencies or territories which are associated to the crown or to the u.k. another example, the isle of

man. n. i have designed an inquiry for jets in the way it is taxed in the isle of mann, and if responses are not satisfactory -- this island is also screened -- daniel: it sounds like an excuse in order to not be tough within states like britain or island. 12.5% tax rate is extremely low. pierre: there is sovereignty on tax rates but it is not zero, it is 12.5%. when it is not respected we consider it is state aid. coming back to the blacklist, if we have those criterias, i

have three messages. first, it must be delivered fast. we must have the blacklist before the end of 2017. second, we need a credible blacklist. it is more obviously than one territory. all countries which are following those criteria must be listed. third, you cannot have a credible list if you do not have credible sanctions, appropriate sanctions. that is what we're working on. yesterday there was a council in brussels, we made progress. with the paradise papers scandal, the governments feel the need to deliver. the commission is there to push them to deliver. the public opinion is there to push them to deliver. the media are here to push them to deliver. daniel: the commissioner

president jean-claude juncker has been remarkably quiet. i put it to you that the commission has zero credibility to handle this issue of tax avoidance because after all, the commission president, is accused of encouraging tax avoidance when he was the prime minister. pierre: that is absolutely false. this commission has done more for fighting tax evasion than all the commissions in the previous 20 years. daniel:-ish uncle juncker a credible -- is jean-claude juncker credible figurehead? pierre: wait a minute. a new period, a period of transparency. i am tax commissioner and i have full trust of jean-claude juncker. i act in his name. i have 11 proposals and directives. of them, six have been inducted. which is not easy, considering the rule of unanimity.

we are really a team that is dedicated -- daniel: he is the architect of massive tax avoidance in luxembourg. pierre: you cannot say that. daniel: in 2003 he encouraged amazon to put its tax base in luxembourg. pierre: in this commission, we are very confidently the champions of fighting tax fraud and tax evasion. we talked about the blacklist. i will mention two other proposals. the first one is i think that the activity of those intermediaries, legal advisors, fiscal advisors, or banks -- for banks, it must be made transparent.

the third one is that we have already established reporting. between tax administrations, i would like it to become public. i think there's no position between investment, which we want to protect, and transparency. because transparency is the only way to tackle -- daniel: if you get what you are looking for, how will this affect the average person in europe who is watching this right now? if you get what you want and close these tax loopholes and blacklist taxation's? pierre: -- blacklist these tax havens? pierre: probably those practices are mostly legal but they are not moral. this cannot be possible. why? it exists only because it is hidden. if it is transparent and public,

it is not possible anymore. all those people, although structures, all those states which today are named and shamed after the paradise papers, if their activity was immediately made public, then they would be much, much more careful. that is why transparency is a massive destruction of -- destructive weapon against this. that is why this commission is so strong on this. daniel: you mentioned the potential threat of sanctions. what are we talking about here? are we talking about fines directly for eu firms to try and squirrel away money in tight -- in tax havens abroad? almost is a significant legal threat, they will continue to see tax avoidance is and misdemeanors. pierre: we're not talking about firms. we're talking about states. we have mentioned some of them. but there are states which will

be listed i hope that will have a very strong blacklist. the sanctions must be linked to their own linking to the union. trade deals, or multilateral or bilateral agreements that can be suspended. but the best section, the strong -- sanction is name and same -- is name and shame. daniel: are we now finally going to see significant change in cracking down on tax havens under your leadership in this case? pierre: it is not up to me to decide that. the commission -- we have taken so many initiatives. but the ball is in the camp of the member states. it is up to them to decide.

they have to decide and deliver. they have to deliver before the end of this year. 2017 is the year. daniel: thank you very much for taking the time to talk to us today. a new set of challenges could be set to hit european carmakers. the eu commission is proposing another 30% cut in vehicle emissions. the new rules could impose massive penalties on carmakers do not comply. that has left german carmakers in particular on edge. a new study shows several auto manufacturers are already having trouble meeting existing targets. reporter: less of this, and more of this. reducing greenhouse gas emissions while still keeping the eu car market competitive. that is the eu commission's plan for the future of the european car industry. >> this is not only good for the planet but also for our pockets. reporter: the commission wanted 30% reduction in carbon

emissions from cars and vans by 2030 compared to 2021. but they first want to see if 15% -- the first want to see a 15% reduction by 2025. the proposal also offered incentive for the production and sale of electric cars. environmentalists and car manufacturers alike waited with baited breath to hear the plans and the commission says they are designed to please both sides. >> this proposal is ambitious but realistic. >> they are ambitious, they are cost-effective. ambitious but not -- reporter: but many are not happy. environmentalists groping for a quota on the number of clean energy vehicles carmakers have to produce and have been left angry viper boards -- by reports that the proposal was watered down after intervention by car lobbyists. >> this is a president to the german -- this is a present to the german car industry. they are highly unambitious.

most importantly, the proposed zero emission vehicle target has been completely removed from the proposal after direct lobbying by the german car industry. this is a huge disappointment. reporter: the proposal still needs the green light from the european parliament and e.u. membership ace. -- member states. december of whom say they have to accelerate reforms if the car industry wants to stay competitive in a fast-moving markets. daniel: film fans in mourning. brent: a sad day for the james bond film fans. the only german bond girl has died. she was 79. she gained international fame in the offered hitchcock film "top az" and met her end at the hands of super villain blofeld in "you only live twice." >> well?

[screaming] brent: you have to watch out for those trapdoors. she also had a following in germany for her cult movies. she passed away in bavaria. after a short break i will be back to take her to the day -- take you through the day. stick around for that. ♪ [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org]

- [narrator] international trade has transformed the way we live. the question of how open markets should be to competition can lead to intense political debate and occasionally war. since world war ii the us has been a staunch supporter of free trade. but support is ebbing and calls for protectionism are emerging. - i'm going to issue a notification of intent to withdrawal from the trans pacific partnership, a potential disaster for our country. - [narrator] supporters of free trade say it creates the greatest amount of wealth for the highest number of people. representing the most efficient use of the world's resources. opponents say free trade eliminates jobs at home and makes the nation weak. international trade next on great decisions. (dramatic instrumental)