In the wake of continued victimization of trans community, it is high time to sensitize the masses on the issues of this most vulnerable section of the society. We need to fairly deal with trans persons and at the same time, strict action is required against hate speech, bullying and body-shaming of the transgender persons. The provision of fear-free environment is first requirement which will enable them to streamline into the society and become useful members of the society.

It is due to lack of provision of basic rights that trans genders are being victimized. That’s why they are demanding the same. Last week, a large number of transgender activists gathered at Frere Hall in Karachi with a view to demanding basic rights which are not provided them despite the enaction of a number of laws. Titled as ‘Sindh Moorat March 2022’, hundreds of transgenders were part of this March and it was held in connection with the grand global March which is obversed every year on Nov 20.

The March participants were demanding criminalisation of the bullying, body-shaming and hate speech against them.

Besides, they also demanded0 the passage and protection of the Transgenders Protection of Rights Act "in its original form".  It is very unfortunate that whenever the vulnerable sections of the society get some relief and protection from the state, some religious leaders start opposing those moves. The opposition by some religious parties against the Transgender Act 2018 is a case in point. The JUI-F and JI have been criticizing this act. The JUI-F has also moved the Shariat court against transgender act, asking the court to declare this Act as against Shariat. On the other hand, the Council of Islamic Ideology (CII) is also critical of the Transgender Law, saying  some sections of the Act are not in accordance with Sharaiat and  may result in new social issues. It may be mentioned here that Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act was passed by the National Assembly last week and it was actually enacted in 2018 and its basic aims is to protect the rights of the transgenders who are the most vulnerable section of the society, reeling in real pain and distress due lack of legal protections of their rights.  The Act is aimed at provision of equal rights to transgender in the fields of education, basic health facilities, getting CNICs and passports, and it also guarantees their right to contest election and also cast their votes. But the irony is that some religious parties view this bill as legalizing homosexuality in the society and damaging the social fabrics of the society.

On the other hand, the human rights activists have lauded this Law, saying it guarantees basic rights of the trans community and as such there is no need of propaganda against it. As a matter of fact, the 11-page Transgender Law dost not mention homosexuality or allowing trans to change their sex, or giving them a licence for unnatural acts of sex, it also does not allow marriage of the same sex persons, but even a fuss has been made of it which is a matter of concern. The irony is that the transgenders have been killed with impunity across the country every now and then, but the religious parties never critcised this cruel practice in our society but now when the law to protect them has been made functional, they are have come to the fore to challenge its legality. What our leaders fail to understand is that "Transgenders  are also humans and they must be given all due rights.

On the positive side is the coalition partners support for the rights of transgenders which shows that the issues of most vulnerable segment of the society, i.e., transgender persons, are getting due attention at provincial and central level in recent years. Though the steps taken so far are not enough to provide full protection of life and property to these persons, yet they are steps in the right directions and with the passage of time and with the formation of more laws and more measures, these persons will be at par with other citizens of the society and will be able to stand on their own feet. Recently, the KP government enacted law to form an endowment fund for the well-being of trans persons which is quite in line with the earlier steps taken by the central and provincial governments as it will ensure a pathway to economic stability and empowerment of the trans persons, who are still depending on begging for their survival as the society do not let them do their own works and earn their livelihood through respectable jobs.

The bill is aimed at setting up of a an endowment fund to the tune of  Rs50 million for the welfare of transgender persons, who are in line of fire in the KP province for long and till now an estimated seventy transgender persons have been killed during the last  seven years in the province. This number is extremely high as compared to those in other provinces, i.e., 23 in Punjab during the corresponding period and a still lesser number in Sindh. It is not that other provinces are safe for trans persons but KP has turned to be a murder-field for them. In this backdrop, the formation of the said law is need of the hour as according to latest data on population of trans persons, there are an estimated 45,000 transgender persons in  the KP alone. This stands in stark contrast with the number of  the 2017 general census which shows them to be around one thousand in number which is not a reality. It may be recalled here that along with the government efforts, the trans persons themselves are also making efforts to bring them into the mainstream of society. Since 2018, three trans persons have made to three different high-profile professions on their own and created history of a kind.  Dr Sarah Gill made history by making to the medical profession as she became the Pakistan's first transgender doctor.  Karachi's Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC)  took the initiative of providing  a house job to Sarah Gill, who is proving her mettle as par excellence. In 2018, it was Marvia Malik who made history by becoming the country's first trans person to become a newsreader and media figure when she appeared on Pak TV channel in her debut transmission. Earlier this year, Nisha Rao rose from ashes to shun begging for money on the streets to become the first transgender lawyer in the country. These  developments came on the heels of the 2018 milestone law  titled the Transgender Persons (Protection of Right) Act 2018  which is aimed at ensuring the basic rights of transgender like their right to  education, right to identification in the form of their access to get the National Identity Cards, right to vote and right to stand in elections  etc. This law provides a sigh of relief to this long-suffering segment of the society which is out-rightly shunned for the society.

Published in The Daily National Courier, November, 21 2022

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