Reading Time: 4 minutes Pakistan's transgender community, once accepted, faces ongoing marginalization. Recent struggles, exemplified by Zakra Zalala's case, highlight pervasive persecution. The 2018 Transgender Persons Act granted crucial rights, but in 2023, the Federal Shariat Court challenged some provisions, sparking opposition from activists and international organizations. Despite a brief setback, the National Database and Registration Authority resumed printing 'X' identity cards. The broader fight for transgender rights in Pakistani society persists.
Transgender people have been recorded in history dating as far back as 5000 BC. Statista reports that around 3% of the global population identifies as transgender, gender fluid, non-binary, and other identities. It sums up to nearly 240 million people around the world. Despite that, transgender or non-binary people have struggled for their rights immensely.
Transgender people have to struggle with exclusion and marginalization from a young age, and they are subjected to bullying, harassment, or even beatings and killings
Back in the day, South Asia was one part of the world where transgender people were accepted and were given important roles in royal courts, especially the Mughals. It wasn’t till British colonial rule that the “third-gender” people, commonly known as ‘hijras’ in South Asia, became a marginalized community. In 1852, when a transgender person named Bhoorah was murdered, the British authorities were quick to blame the victim. Historian Jessica Hinchy told BBC:
“She was a victim of the crime but her death was interpreted as evidence of criminality and immorality of the eunuchs.”
In Pakistan, the transgender community, commonly known as khwaja sira, and allies have faced persecution, abductions, and other worse things over the decades. The persecution does not just happen at the hands of the authorities; families of gender-fluid individuals also play an equal part in their oppression. One such case was reported by Propergaanda of an individual named Zakra Zalala. She was forcefully sent to a rehabilitation center where they beat, sexually abused, and mentally tortured Zakra. Zakra recorded the disturbing events that spanned over four months in a video. Many people supported her, but most of the comments were negative, including the top comment that said, “software update.” Other comments on the post included distasteful things like, “feeling sorry for him, hope he’s straight now” and “that’s so rude, please do it again.”
In 2020, a transgender activist, Saro Imran, wrote details of how their community suffers at the hands of society. They are shunned from society, disowned by their families, and often have no choice but to resort to sex work. It results in working in an unsafe environment where they are subjected to torture and sexual abuse. According to Saro, many transgender people have to resort to drugs and self-harm to cope with the realities of their lives, and there is no one to help or support them except for their community members. According to Shehzadi Rai, another transgender activist, the only forms of employment for the community are begging, dancing, and sex work.
The first small victory for the transgender community came in 2012, during the tenure of Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhary when transgender people were given the right to vote and inheritance. However, according to Human Rights Asia, the judgment was not implemented until 2018.
In 2018, a landmark bill, the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act 2018, was passed by the National Assembly of Pakistan. It gave the transgender community some relief and the bill was hailed by the transgender community and its supporters. According to the bill, a transgender person has the right to be recognized as per his or her self-perceived gender
identity and has the right to get registered as per their self-perceived gender identity with
all government departments. Consequently, the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) started to print ‘X’ national identity cards for transgender individuals.
The bill also prohibits discrimination against transgender people and denial of their unfair treatment in different parts of society. Moreover, the bill also prohibits harassment of the community. It gives them the right to education, inheritance, vote, holding a public office, health, access to public spaces, and the right to assembly, along with a few other things.
The bill was soon opposed by many citizens and was challenged by Senator Mushtaq Ahmed and TV anchor Orya Maqbool Jan in September 2022. Consequently, the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act 2018 recently came under threat in May 2023 when the Federal Shariat Court (FSC) ruled some of the sections of the bill to be against Shariah. The FSC especially mentioned Section 3: recognition of the identity of transgender persons and Section 7: the right to inherit, citing it to be against Shariah. With regards to Section 3, the court said:
“We have come to the conclusion to first declare that according to Islamic injunctions as laid down in the Quran and Sunnah, the gender of a person is subject to the biological sex of a person, therefore, the gender of a person must conform to the biological sex of a person.”
Furthermore, about Section 7, the court said:
“According to the Injunction of Islam as laid down in the Quran and Sunnah all the legal shares of inheritance are to be divided among the legal heirs of the deceased on the basis of their biological sex.”
These court decisions were challenged by human rights activists, as well as some notable figures such as Pakistan People’s Party Secretary General Farhatullah Babar. He called it discriminatory, illogical, and unlawful.
Amnesty International also strongly condemned the court’s decision. They said that the decision was a blow to the rights of an already marginalized community. Amnesty International issued a public statement on May 17 and asked the Government of Pakistan to reject the proposed amendments in the bill. It said:
“Amnesty International’s analysis of the proposed amendments to the Transgender Rights Act has found that they violate safeguards set out in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). As Pakistan has ratified both the ICCPR and CEDAW, it is duty bound to uphold the laws set out in these treaties. Allowing these amendments to proceed would be a violation of Pakistan’s obligations under international human rights law.”
FSC’s decision also prompted NADRA to cease the printing of ‘X’ national identity cards. However, on September 25, NADRA withdrew its earlier decision of not printing X identity cards and resumed the issuance of X identity cards, an act that was commended by the National Commission for Human Rights.
The transgender community has existed in this world since history has been recorded. However, our society shuns them like bad apples and considers them a threat. Pakistan has a history of violence against the transgender community. Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act 2018 gave some semblance of hope to the community, but it has also come under threat from many notable figures and citizens. Many people have stood with the community but it still seems like Pakistani society has a long way to go regarding basic human rights.
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