Hermophrodites/Transgender rights in Pakistan

The next, Pakistan becomes the first Asian country — and one of the few in
the world — to legally recognise self-perceived gender identity.

The 2017 Housing and Population Census counted10,418 transgender

people in Pakistan — a country with a population of over 200 million. This
figure is implausibly low, representing a mere fraction of what the real number
could be.
Members of the transgender community estimate this to be at least half a
million people. If these are the official numbers for the government, then the
resources promised to the community by the Act will reflect that.

RIGHTS

Pakistan’s parliament passed a historic bill in 2018 that allows citizens to self-identify

their gender on all official documentation and protects the rights of its transgender
citizens. It’s a major milestone for the conservative South Asian country.

On May 4 2019, assailantsfatally shot Muni, a transgender woman who

worked as a dancer, when she could not provide change for a Rs1,000 note to
the men she was hired to entertain at a wedding. And two days later,
Pakistan’s National Assembly passed the historic Transgender Persons
(Protection of Rights) Act. The Act is commendable for its nuance, range and
clarity. It allows the citizens of Pakistan to self-identify their gender, bans
discrimination in public places like schools, work, public transportation and
doctor’s offices.

While Pakistan issued its first passports with a third gender category, "X," In 2018, the
groundbreaking bill gives people the right to choose between male, female, “a blend of
both,” or neither, regardless of the sex they were assigned at birth, Al Jazeera reported.
The bill’s language paves the way for a wider range of people to be given rights,
including those who identify as trans, non-binary, and gender-nonconforming.

Transgender people can apply for a driving license,passport and other

official documents using their chosen identities.

Heavy penalties are delineated for assault, unlawful eviction and harassment
of transgenders.

This year’s World Human Rights Day is a special one for transgender activists
in Pakistan: for the first time, a third space has been created for them.

Bank accounts are beingopened using forms with a space for a third gender.
Under new government policy, transgender people can avail interest-free
loans.

Jobs may soon roll out for the community, including the Supreme Court as
Chief Justice Saqib Nisar haspromised.
This legislation could very well transform the community. Traditionally
relegated to entertainment, sex work and begging, they are now electoral
candidates.

They welcome the legislation, but rightly worry it will not dismantle decades of
stigma and prejudice.

PROBLEMS:

At the same time, there have been cases of transgender women who have
been set on fire for allegedly refusing sexual favours.

They are being attacked in their own homes, stabbed when they stand
up for themselves.

Since 2015, over 50 transgender people have been killed in the country, and activists

and victims have reported discriminatory and abusive treatment at the hands of medical
professionals and law enforcement officers.