Transgenders continue to face discrimination in Pakistan despite 2018 law promising equality

Karachi: The about 1 million strong transgender community in Pakistan continues to struggle to even access basic affordable, clean and safe housing in the country, notwithstanding the 2018 law guaranteeing equal rights, activists and community representatives have said.

Seven years after the Pakistan census officially recognised transgender people and six years after The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2018, came into effect, the biggest problem the community faces is a lack of hygienic living spaces.

In the absence of such facilities, members of the gender minority struggle with privacy and are exposed to health risks, including Hepatitis, AIDS, and tuberculosis, activists said.

The challenge of finding hygienic, safe and affordable housing is so acute that it has forced the majority of the transgender community in Karachi to live in shared community houses.

Aasia lives in Mahmoodabad with four other friends. Pointing out that their dwelling is expensive and shabby, the transgender said together they pool in Rs 20,000 monthly rent, which normally would be available for Rs 10,000. “But at least we remain together,” Aasia said.

But it is not just the higher rent that the community members face.

Sundri Begum, a leader of the transgender community in Karachi’s slum area of Mehmoodabad, said that when they want to rent living spaces, they generally face discrimination and even refusal from landlords and estate agents.

“Landlords and estate agents at times say they are helpless as the people from the locality pressure them not to give rental property to non-binary people,” Sundri Begum said.

Husna, one of Aasia's friends, narrated that a few months ago she rented a small two-room house with her friend in the Akhtar Colony slum area.

“The landlord charged us a higher rent. But as soon as we settled in, we were harassed, ridiculed, and some residents put us under moral pressure to leave,” Husna said, adding, “Once we were even subjected to violence, so we left.” The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2018 gives equal rights to transgender people in every field, be it education, health, employment or housing, but due to its lack of proper understanding by the people or police and poor implementation, the reality is very different, said Zia Awan, a legal aid lawyer and human rights activist.

Another problem is that the majority of transgender persons are not educated and come from very poor backgrounds and are unaware of their legal rights.

“I have dealt with some cases pro bono where some transgender persons were forcibly evicted from their homes by the landlord after he apparently came under pressure from the neighbours and the affectees were also not aware of their legal rights,” he said.

Zeba Begum, who is educated and well-off as her beauty parlour business thrives in the upmarket Bahadurabad area of the city, said the non-binary people remain deprived of a dignified living.

“Our problem is also that many of us often lack identification documents because of marking the gender column in the computerised national identity card (CNIC). And when it comes to rental accommodation, this encourages estate agents and landlords to fleece us.

“I think the government must do something to provide proper housing for transgender people at affordable prices,” said Zeba Begum, perhaps an exception when it comes to living in a decent neighbourhood.

A majority of the transgenders reside in low-income areas and even in slums like Mehmoodabad, Akhtar Colony, Shireen Jinnah colony, Orangi town etc.

The United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner (OHCHR) states that the transgender community in Pakistan faces widespread discrimination and stigma in accessing housing, health, education, employment, and even bathroom facilities; largely attributed to a lack of recognition of their gender identity.

Zahid Ahmed, who does property business in Karachi’s Gulberg area, said he and others like him, often use their own national identity cards for documentation purposes as transgender citizens often lack identification to sign agreements.

In 2017, for the first time, Pakistan's census officially recognised transgender people, but even then, there still are concerns about the underrepresentation of the community due to flawed data collection methods, said officials who did not want to be quoted.

Activists further pointed out that the transgender community across the country is often viewed with an eye of suspicion. “While some associate them with immoral or obscene activities, others accuse them of indulging in sex work,” Sundri Begum.

Going beyond such discrimination, the transgender community even today continues to be the butt of jokes in comedy shows, stage performances and even colloquial humour, he added.

Rani, who lives with her partner in a low-income area, recounted her harrowing experience. “Even today, when we are out some people make us the butt of jokes, objectify them sexually and pass innuendo remarks.

“This, despite the fact that both of us are graduates, dress properly and do 9-5 jobs. You can imagine what happens to those of our community members who depend on dancing at private functions or ask for alms at traffic signals,” Rani said.

Dr Mehrub Awan, a transgender activist, said that transgender people are often excluded from the support networks of the government that sustain others.

Awan said, “Just 221 transgender individuals are registered as beneficiaries of the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) – a meagre fraction of the estimated half a million who could benefit. Why?" According to various studies and estimates, including the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics and the Integrated Biological and Behavioural Surveillance (IBBS), the transgender population in Pakistan is estimated at around 500,000 to 1 million.

Many in the transgender community do not have a digital national identity card, which becomes a barrier that shuts them out from getting access to government support programmes.

For many of them, family and social pressures prevent them from mentioning “X” as their gender on the CNIC instead of male or female, so many prefer to not get the cards.

Rani also recalled an earlier experience when after moving to a posh locality, the two friends spent hardly a few peaceful days. “Then our neighbours started acting up and made our life miserable. They would not even allow their children near us. Even women hurled inappropriate words,” Rani said. “Eventually, we left the flat and took shelter with our guru.” Shehla Gill, who works for the community, explained that although there isn't a single official 'head' of Pakistan's diverse transgender community, it is organised through various networks, but mainly through the community matriarch system, called gurus by the transgenders.

“If it was not for the system of having gurus -- the community matriarchs -- many in the transgender community would be homeless and without direction,” Gill added.