By: Ayyan Shaikh
TRIGGER WARNING: MENTIONS OF ABUSE
When talking about the trans community in Pakistan, people use the word trans as an umbrella term for intersex and transgender people. By definition, trans and intersex don’t overlap. However, some people can be trans and intersex at the same time. Similarly, not all transgender people are intersex and not all intersex people are trans. Intersex is a general term used for a variety of situations in which a person is born with reproductive or sexual anatomy that doesn’t fit the boxes of “male” or “female”. It is a naturally occurring variation in humans. Transgender, on the other hand, is a term which is used to describe people whose gender identity or expression does not match the sex they were assigned at birth. This means that if for example someone was assigned to be a male at their birth, and later they do not identify themself as male, then their gender identity is whatever they identify themself as and hence they are transgender.
These topics are very taboo in Pakistan and so people refuse to talk about these due to the cultural norms. As a result, most people are unaware of the difference between intersex and transgender. And so, trans and intersex people are treated horribly in Pakistan. The idea of trans and intersex people living a normal life in Pakistan is unthinkable. They are denied basic human rights and are abandoned at their birth or later in life by their parents. This, along with them being denied jobs just because of their gender and sex, results in them being forced to turn towards sex work and dancing and singing at unpleasant places. They are used by “normal” people as a means of amusement and derogatory words such as khusra are commonly used to refer to them. Despite there being laws giving trans and intersex people their basic rights, people in Pakistan still consider them to be lowly and inferior to them. The implementation of these laws also is a huge problem which is why trans and intersex people are constantly harassed, abused, raped, and shunned by people. Here are a few ways trans and intersex people are treated in Pakistan. A recent example is this video where trans people are being abused and forced to take their clothes off while the others harass, ridicule, and assault them. Look at this and tell me they deserve to be treated like this. If you even have a single ounce of humanity in you, you’d know that this is absolutely wrong on every level.
People often use their religion as a means to justify their inhumane behavior towards the trans community in Pakistan, however, they often fail to remember that even their religion promotes peace and in no way allows them to treat other people the way they do. Why is it so hard for people to just let them be and treat them like any human being should be treated? Absolutely nothing gives them the right to harass, assault, and abuse trans and intersex people. If you aren’t living exactly according to your religion, then you have no right to impose it on others. Khawaja sara or trans and intersex people deserve to live a normal life just like we are. They are not less of a human being just because they do not fit your societal standards. Live and let people live.
(Image from here.)
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