HUMAN beings are of three kinds — male, female and transgender. In society male and female have respect, the transgender people don’t receive any respect? Are they not human beings?
A transgender woman, Gul Panra, was killed while another received bullet wounds as they came under attack by unknown gunmen in Peshawar’s Palosi area.
The transgender women were returning after attending a function in suburbs of the provincial capital when were shot at by men clad in balaclavas.
TransAction Pakistan, a group advocating trans rights, said Gul Panra was shot six times at the point-blank range. She was rushed to Sherpao Hospital, but she succumbed to her wounds on the way. Whereas, another trans woman, Chahat, was in critical condition and moved to Khyber Teaching Hospital.
According to reports, almost 50 members of the transgender community have been killed and more than 300 have faced sexual harassment and assault during the last four years in KP alone. Moreover, gender discrimination has forced the community to indulge in prostitution – that has exposed it to the hazards of HIV AIDS.
The life of transgender is always at stake at every turn when they are not ready for prostitution and dancing, scratching their soul and their bleeding bodies become a sign of masculinity in our worthless society. Whenever the pride of father and brother awakes, snatching the identity of this helpless gender, is a sign of servitude. We have so many cases before us that nothing can be done but regret.
The string of murders of transgender women is an “epidemic.” The number of victims could be even higher due to under-reporting. The dangers are unlikely to abate soon. This kind of violence originates in some of the deepest recesses of the psyche. Some religions abhor any sort of unconventionality in sexual matters. Our current attitude as a community, wants to bar transgender people from every walk of life and restrict their access to public bathrooms, fosters more fear and ostracism.
“Transgender people are just people who want to live. “They might not look like the way we expect them to live — and they might challenge our idea of gender. But it’s good to be challenged.”
Due to the controversial nature and the typical uptight and backward mindset of people, the subject of transgender rights in Pakistan is not even discussed in the sophisticated and literate part of the community. The transgender community has been rebuked all over Pakistan and is not even considered as equals to the other members of the society.
As a society fostering a number of stereotypical taboos and inhumane norms, the Pakistani transgender society has always been the sufferer of oppression and skepticism. There is an inborn fear of the transgender amongst the “normal people” and this fear is inflicted since childhood. Pakistani parents are insecure and believe it’s inappropriate for their child to interact with a transgender hence developing this feeling of reluctance towards them.
As Pakistanis we need to realize that this is not merely a war that these individuals have to fight, they are humans just like us and deserve as much of a right to good education, good job opportunities and fair and equal treatment as any other normal member of the community. We need to be the voice that speaks on their behalf, fights for their rights and makes living less painful for them.
