Society continues to discriminate against transgender persons, say activists
HYDERABAD: A group of transgender persons lament despite the country having a pro-transgender law that seeks to end social discrimination of their community, they continue to be frowned upon and their ‘gender’ is not being given acceptability in society.
Speaking at a press conference at local press club on Thursday, Mariam Shaikh, Sana Khan, HRCP representative Ghufrana Arain and a policewoman Maria Sario said that the government was not able to protect their community despite enactment of the law.
They referred to a latest incident in which a family refused to perform funeral of their family member, a 28-year-old transgender, Sheeraz alias Sheeraza, after she died at a hospital a few days back. Subsequently, they had to perform her last rites themselves, they said.
They said that police received Sheeraz’s body as unclaimed and reported the matter to them after her parents flatly refused to receive the body and perform her last rites.
Maria Sario said that a desk existed in all police stations to deal with transgender issues and that was why the hospital reported to police about this body. Police contacted the transgender community over Sheeraz’s burial and she was then buried in local graveyard, she said.
Mariam Shaikh attributed the incident to general insensitivity being shown towards their community by society. It was in spite of the fact that an act had been passed to safeguard their rights but still they were not being accepted in society and faced social discrimination.
She said that trasngenders were not alien to this society and condemned refusal of Sheeraz’s family to receive her body for a decent burial. According to her family, she said, Sheeraz was excommunicated, she was denied her share in inheritance as well in violation of Islamic and modern laws.
She said that Sheeraz’s family had disowned her 14 to 15 years back when she showed signs of being transgender, forcing her to join the transgender community.
She argued Sheeraz’s case should not be seen in isolation it was a reflection of general social discrimination their community fellows faced every day. Family of a transgender was to be “counselled” under this Act if any of the family member turned out to be transgender till the age of puberty, she said.
She said that the transgender law was introduced in 2018 by Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf government and it aimed to protect their legal rights. For how long they would keep struggling for their rights as the government was not able to protect them, she said.
Sana Khan pointed out that they continued to face name calling and were frowned upon in society whenever they visited a place. Their ‘gender’ was not being accepted in principle, she said.
She said that they were being degraded by everyone. This law even suggested punitive measures for the ‘gurus’ if they forced transgenders into beggary or dancing, she said.
Ghufrana Arain contended the pro-transgender law sought to end social discrimination of their community. They enjoyed fundamental rights under the Constitution which was supreme, she said.
Sheeraz’s body was received in Bhitai hospital before Eidul Azha. According to police surgeon, Dr Waqar, the postmortem of the deceased was not conducted as leader of the transgender community did not approve of it and took away the body.
Published in Dawn, June 21st, 2024
Courtesy : Dawn
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