Five Stories That Show The Progress Transgender Pakistanis Have Made
Pakistan’s transgender community have long been part of our society however it is one of Pakistan’s most un-empowered communities, often pushed to the very periphery of the society.
These five stories will give you hope.
Ensuring equality: Transgenders equal citizens of Pakistan, rules SC
September 26, 2012: Transsexuals and eunuchs have finally won recognition following some three years of interest shown by the Supreme Court. On Tuesday, a three-member bench headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry disposed of the case and ruled that eunuchs were entitled to all the rights guaranteed in the Constitution to all citizens including the right of inheritance.
Hot Drag Act: Ali Saleem
October 18, 2007: Since 2005. the openly bisexual twenty-eight-year-old Saleem, who in everyday life wears jeans and a five o’clock shadow, has been transforming himself into Pakistan’s most celebrated drag queen, the gorgeous female TV host of AAJ TV’s insanely popular Late Night Show With Begum Nawazish Ail.
Pakistani clerics issue decree on transgender rights under Islamic Law
June 29 2016: Fifty clerics in Pakistan issued a fatwa, or religious decree, saying that transgender people can marry under Islamic law — but only if they do not have “visible signs of both genders.”The decree also said that transgender people must not be deprived their share of inheritance, and said it was sinful to humiliate, insult or tease people for being transgender.
Pakistani transgender candidate to run for office
FEB 25, 2013: A member of Pakistan’s transgender community is to contest upcoming general elections on a ticket of equal rights, saying the community has more to offer than begging or dancing at weddings. It will also be the first time Pakistan’s estimated 500,000 “eunuchs” are eligible to seek office, after the Supreme Court in 2011 ordered the government to issue them with identity cards and to register them as voters.
Pakistan counts transgender people in national census for first time
Jan 9, 2017: The Lahore High Court issued the order to the government, National Database and Registration Authority, and the interior ministry with a government official assuring the court that the transgender community will be part of the 2017 census. There are no official figures on the number of transgender people living in Pakistan but advocacy group Trans Action estimates there are at least 500,000 in the country with a population of 190 million.
Next month, millennial.pk will launch in-depth look into Pakistan’s trans community.
millennial.pk is launching to provide a platform to young Pakistanis to be a productive voice in the social, policy and political debates in the country. We would love you to be part of it! Email me at wani@cyap.org.pk for any questions, feedback or constructive criticism.
