Tag: transgender rights

  • Khawaja Sira community members attacked by mob in Karachi; No action taken yet

    Khawaja Sira community members attacked by mob in Karachi; No action taken yet

    The first-ever elected transgender member of the Karachi Municipal Council and transgender rights activist Shahzadi Rai took to X (former Twitter) and described an incidence of violence against her community members.

    Shahzadi wrote, “A mob attack occurred at Johar Mor. These individuals first beat members of my community, then threatened to kill us openly. Please help and kindly tag the police. @sindhpolicedmc8 @BBhuttoZardari @PPP_Org @AuratMarchKHI @TMItalks.”

    In the video she highlighted how police arrived quite late while she was constantly being threatened with being killed. In another video, she was trying to calm the mob, but nothing worked at that point. She has appealed to the Sindh police to take legal action against the hate crime and violence.

    Member of Awami Workers Party, Ammar Rashid, wrote, “Horrifying to see. There is a direct line from the anti-trans hate being spread by rightwing activists, youtubers & parties to such mobs. Your ‘gender activism’ hobby & moral panic clickbait leads to situations of life & death for others. And no surprise Sindh police is MIA.”

    Transgender Rights Activist Aradhiya Khan demanded strict action, “ Urgent Alert: Another mob attack at Johar Mor! Once again, our community is being targeted and hunted down. We’re facing threats of violence and need immediate intervention.
    @sindhpolicedmc8 , please step in to stop this cycle of terror. Lives are at stake! #StopViolence”

    Human Rights Activist Gulalai Ismail highlighted the consequences of online campaigns against transgender community, “This is terrifying and highly condemnable. The recent trans-hate politics of JI and likes of Maria B has intensified the existing threats to the lives of Pakistani khwajasira community. These hate mongers should be held accountable & brought to justice.”

    Aurat March Karachi also reacted to the situation and said, “This is outrageous and horrifying. Till when will the khawaja sira community and trans people be forced to live in fear of such gruesome violence? Why do these fanatical cis men feel emboldened enough to issue threats like these, that too so openly? We stand in solidarity with the trans community and reiterate our demand to immediately end the hate campaign & mob violence targeting them.”

    Lawyer Muneeb Qadir said, “’Taang pe taang rakh ke cheer doon ga’ was what Qaiser Raja had said about transgenders & while specifically naming Shahzadi Rai in that speech. Hate speech can have dangerous consequences as you can see from what happened in Johar Mor last night. Maria B, Mishi, this one’s on u”

  • In a first, Peshawar High Court orders separate queue for transgender voters

    In a first, Peshawar High Court orders separate queue for transgender voters

    Peshawar High Court has directed authorities in the province to establish a separate queue for transgender voters in PK-81 from where trans rights activist Sobia Khan is contesting elections as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s first transgender individual participating in general polls.

    The court’s verdict highlighted the absence of specific documents for the transgender quota, as no such provision currently exists. Additionally, the court-mandated security measures for transgender candidate Subiya during the general elections, where she is running independently in PK-81.

    Who is Sobia Khan?

    Sobia is hailing from Peshawar and she has filed nomination papers for the provincial assembly seat from constituency PK-81. She is running her campaign as an independent candidate.

    Notably, Sobia Khan, a graduate and the first transgender broadcaster in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has been hosting TNN’s “Sobiya Khan Show” for the past four years.

    Sobia welcomed the court ruling. Talking to Tribal News Network, Sobia detailed her broader goals, aiming not only to champion transgender rights but also to challenge societal perceptions. She aspires to work for the welfare of the constituency, particularly focusing on the rights of women and children, breaking stereotypes about the capabilities of transgenders.

    Sobia Khan, backed by her family and local support, appealed to NGOs, civil society, and the district administration for assistance in her election campaign. Acknowledging the unprecedented nature of a transgender participating directly in elections, she stressed the need for security during her campaign.

  • ‘Dangerous and irresponsible’: Ushna Shah calls out Maria B for misusing Palestine activism

    ‘Dangerous and irresponsible’: Ushna Shah calls out Maria B for misusing Palestine activism

    Actress Ushna Shah took to her X (formerly Twitter) account to call out controversial fashion designer Maria B for misusing her tweets and photos from the Palestine march in Karachi to malign the transgender movement.

    “Maria B’s collaboration with questionable low grade bloggers and use of my tweets and photos from the Palestine March — where I was incidentally standing with a transgender rights activist — for her agenda is dangerous and irresponsible. She’s misusing edited content to stir controversy, exploiting trending topics like Palestine in a way that’s beneath even her.”

    “I am not aligned with her extreme right-wing or any extreme left-wing views,” continued the ‘Habs’ actress. “I have a diverse social circle, like most actresses working in showbiz, and I don’t subscribe to any political agenda. I value all life, from minorities to even animals. I urge Maria to realize the harm and potential risks to my safety her actions cause. In layman’s terms: please keep my name out of your mouth & don’t drag me in a war that has nothing to do with me.”

    “I am not pushing any agenda except the liberation of Palestine, do not use me to push yours.” Ushna wrote. “I’m sorry I rejected coming to your march, but this was a sick retaliation which has endangered me. Me not wanting to associate with Maria and her march doesn’t make me an LGBTQ activist. It has nothing to do with that. She has made me uncomfortable since her stunt with the covid patient working in her home, I see her as an irresponsible person who weaponises religion to push her brand & her recent stunt proves just that. Using the photo from a *Palestine* march in which an activist Shahzadi came next to me for a while & posing it as an LGBTQ March is again highly irresponsible of her, not to mention spreading lies online to endanger someone is illegal.”

    In the next tweet Ushna wrote: “To the fundamentalists threatening me: I’ve written this in Urdu. Simple words “meri dosti SAB ACTRESSES ki tarah SAB sey hei, meinay Palestine ke ilawa koi agenda push nahi kiya, Jo sawal mujhse karney hein woh sab actresses sey karein. LogoN ko mazhab Matt istemal karney dein sales banaaney ke liye. Mere Falasteen make stance ke baad haath sey endorsements jaa rahi hein, matlab high paying multinational waqfay, Jo ke aap sab ko patah hei mujhe bohot miliey thee alhamdulilah, Aur yeh logue Falasteen ko Aur mujhe istemaal kar rahey hein ratings ke liye”. I am at Umrah, let me get back to it without fearing propaganda. Jo masla mera hei hee nahi uss mein mujhe mutt ghaseetein. Aur meri avaaz falasteen ke haq mein Jo uthee hei ussey chup Matt karwayein.”

    Ushna Shah ended the thread by writing: “Maria, I am not new to cheap made up controversies by bloggers but a woman in your position should know better than to use me and to use this genocide. You are old enough to be my mother. Since you decided to address me online and open me up to threats, even though you have my number, I’ve decided to do the same. What you have done is dangerous, irresponsible & illegal, and if I had time to visit FIR offices, I would.”

    Maria B has yet to comment on Ushna Shah’s statement.

  • ‘No one was available’: Ali Rehman on why transgender actors weren’t hired for Guru

    ‘No one was available’: Ali Rehman on why transgender actors weren’t hired for Guru

    Actor Ali Rehman Khan is currently playing the role of a transgender woman in the Express Entertainment drama ‘Guru’. The drama is facing intense backlash from social media users, especially transgender activists like Shahzadi Rai, who condemned the limited spaces allowed to members of the transgender community within the entertainment industry to be able to tell their own stories.

    Speaking to The Current, the activist expressed her dismay at how cis men were constantly taking up roles about people belonging to the third gender, and used the incorrect term used to describe the community like ‘intersex’.

    “People who do not want to declare themselves as intersex, why are you pushing the label on them? And roles that are about the third gender, you should give them to people who identify under it. A man’s role would be played by a man, while a woman’s role would be played by a woman.”

    READ MORE: Transgender activist Shehzadi Rai, Twitter users criticise ‘Guru’ for hiring cis man to play intersex character

    Several social media users also pointed out that films like ‘Joyland’ which starred transgender actress Alina Khan were met with intense backlash and banned in the country, but it was dramas like ‘Guru’ which were not met with the same scrutiny since members of the transgender community aren’t involved in production.

    Speaking to BBC Urdu, the actor has come forward to address these allegations, saying that despite the studio’s best efforts, they couldn’t find transgender actors to take on the role, and encouraged more members of the community to come into the field.

    “We were planning that one or two of the chelas in the show should be members of the transgender community. But we did a lot of auditions and couldn’t find any actors. And with a huge production there is a lot at stake, since you have to shoot for 40-50 days. You can’t just rely on one actor: you have to have a cohesive list.”

    The actor went on to express his desire to see more transgender people coming into acting, who can play these kinds of roles even more efficiently than he has.

    The actor also elaborated on how he had prepared for the leading role, revealing the process involved. He spoke with members of the transgender community, along with watching documentaries and movies related to the topic.

  • Maria B has yet another factually incorrect take on transgender people

    Maria B has yet another factually incorrect take on transgender people

    Designer Maria B has yet again decided to court controversy. The fashion maven took to social media to disperse more of her opinions about transgender communities, because she knows them better than the experts from the community, right? On Friday, the face behind the fashion brand ‘Maria B’ tweeted how the biggest threats to women universities were “biological men” aka transgender women, who were invading women’s bathrooms. She called for a ban on giving admission to transpeople in women’s colleges.

    “Women Universities in Pakistan are under attack. Biological men are now being given admission in our safe spaces for women. Female bathrooms are now being invaded by biological men who feel like women….As it is we live in a Conservative society where parents hesitate sending their daughters for higher education. Forcing biological men into women’s universities under the garb of transgenders will be a great disservice to women’s education. Watch how parents will start stopping their daughters from getting education bcz there are MEN PRETENDING TO BE WOMEN in the universities.”

    The fashion designer went on to slam women rights organisations like Aurat March for “not standing up for women’s rights” and “shutting women’s voices”.

    However, reports from universities all around Pakistan would disprove Maria B’s take that the transgender community is the biggest reason why parents are refraining their daughters from going to universities. Because from all the recent cases of sexual harassment and rape reports from colleges, we can’t help but deduce that the majority of the perpetuators behind these assaults are men.

    Take for instance, the recent case in Ghazi University where a young woman complained of being sexually assaulted and threatened by two male professors who were black mailing her younger sister.

    READ MORE: Accusations of sexual assault, blackmail leveled against two professors in DG Khan

    Or the matter of the ex-head security officer at Islamia University in Bahawalpur, who was caught in July with multiple illicit videos of women and female staff on his phone. He was allegedly black mailing women with threats to leak the videos.

    READ MORE: Police arrest university’s chief security officer for objectionable videos of female students, drug possession

    In June, another male employee at King Edward Medical College was caught making videos of women in washrooms, an action which launched protests as several women revealed they had consistently filed complaints with the KEMU administration about the pressence of male staff members in female bathrooms.

    READ MORE: Employee at King Edward Medical University caught making video of female student in washroom

    In not one of these stories is it mentioned that a transgender woman was caught harassing or black mailing a woman. However recently, reports circulated on social media of a transgender activist who was forcibly converted in a rehabilitation centre Focus Life, where she detailed reports of being tortured, sexually harassed and abused for her gender identity.

    READ MORE: Transgender activist Zaakraa’s story takes sinister turn, wipes all previous posts

    So there you have it folks, it is not transgender women who are making other women feel unsafe in universities, but it is the way institutes turn a blind eye to male privilege, sexual harassment, and protection of harassers that keeps women feeling unsafe in these places.

  • Transgender woman to compete in Miss Universe after winning Miss Netherlands

    Transgender woman to compete in Miss Universe after winning Miss Netherlands

    After being crowned Miss Netherlands, Rikkie Valerie Kollé will represent the country at the Miss Universe pageant.

    The 22-year-old will be the second openly transgender woman to participate in the Miss Universe pageant.
    Kollé took to Instagram to express her excitement and share her story.

    “Yes I’m trans and I want to share my story but I’m also Rikkie and that’s what matters to me. I did this on my own strength and enjoyed every moment,” she wrote.

    Kollé said she wants to be an example for others and is excited for the next adventure.

  • The Guardian ranks ‘Joyland’ among best films of 2023

    The Guardian ranks ‘Joyland’ among best films of 2023

    British newspaper Guardian released an article on some of the best films of 2023 so far, ranging from horror to thrillers and animated comedy films like ‘Marcel the Shell with Shoes On”.

    On the 15th place is Pakistani writer and director Saim Sadiq’s debut film ‘Joyland’ which starred Ali Juenjo and transgender model Alina Khan.

    Discussion the significance of the film, the article described it as “a movie about people who find their inner lives and sense of themselves don’t match up to what is expected of them. Their feeling of wrongness is part of what they have to suppress, from day to day.”

    The film, which was banned in Punjab last year just 24 hours after it got a certificate of approval from CBFC, had aired in India in March, receiving positive remarks from watchers who described their experience as ‘magical’:

    One user wrote:

    “Still can’t get over the experience of watching Joyland on big screen. I’ve never seen the crowd get this hyped, laugh and cry together for a movie before, magical experience.”

    Another user wrote:

    “Joyland is fantastic, heartbreaking and beautifully made – the experience of watching it amongst an engaged enthusiastic audience last night at the Habitat center film festival was exhilarating. Also what about this poster by Salman toor!”

  • Exclusive: Transgender activist Shahzadi Rai discusses inclusive education policy initiated by Sindh Govt

    Exclusive: Transgender activist Shahzadi Rai discusses inclusive education policy initiated by Sindh Govt

    Transgender activist Shahzadi Rai took to social media to announce that she was collaborating with Sindh Education Minister Sardar Shah to work on the first ever transgender inclusive education policy, which will allow more members of the khwaja sira community to enroll into schools and continue to pursue higher education through scholarship programs set up by universities.

    Speaking to The Current, Rai, who is working as a Violence Case Manager for Gender Alliance Initiative, spoke about the importance of the policy, which is a step forward in helping transgender individuals pursue their academic dreams and help in empowering their community:

    “Through this policy, we aim to help members of the Khwaja Sira community pursue higher education, especially those who can read and write but could not study in schools. When we had our meeting to discuss this policy, one of the first things we talked about was setting up a scholarship program for the transgender community in universities. So that more transgender people can study ahead.”

    We also talked about how this policy will help in setting up more safe and inclusive environments for transgender individuals:

    “We had also discussed setting up more safer environments within schools for transgender people. We are forming up a draft of the things we want. Although it won’t be a part of this policy that we are drafting, but ahead in the future we will start including books with chapters that will discuss the history of the transgender community.

    In this policy, we have ensured that it is strictly forbidden that no teacher can misbehave with a transgender student. Our biggest concern is to ensure that teacher’s are trans-friendly.”

    Sindh Education Minister Sardar Shah was seen speaking on the importance of the education policy at the Sindh Assembly, highlighting the importance of such a step which will help members of the transgender community become equal members of our society by providing them fair education policies.

  • Transgender activist Shehzadi Rai, Twitter users criticise ‘Guru’ for hiring cis man to play intersex character

    Express Entertainment has recently released the teaser trailer of the upcoming drama ‘Guru’ about an intersex character, with the main character to be played by Ali Rehman Khan.

    The announcement has received backlash on social media, with transgender activists like Shehzadi Rai taking to Twitter to criticise how such castings prevent opportunities for members of the khwajasira community to tell their own stories:

    “Cisgender men taking opportunities in acting roles that intended for transgender individuals. It is important to promote diversity and inclusivity in all fields, including acting. Kuch tu chor do.”

    Speaking to The Current on the use of ‘intersex’ to describe the khwajasira community, as well as giving third gender roles to men, Rai said:

    “People who do not want to declare themselves as intersex, why are you pushing the label on them? And roles that are about the third gender, you should give them to people who identify under it. A man’s role would be played by a man, while a woman’s role would be played by a woman.”

    Other Twitter users have slammed the announcement as a disservice to the khwajasira community, by profitting of their stories but refusing to lift up members of the community. One user added:

    “Most Pakistani celebrities will never utter a word in support of the khawajasira community when their rights are being taken away but would be the first ones to accept roles to portray khawajasira characters in dramas. Token inclusion at its finest.”

    Another user compared the response of this casting to the backlash the film ‘Joyland’ had received, for which the transgender actress Alina Khan had been cast, and how the backlash began because an actual person from the marginalized community had stepped forward to tell their own story:

    “This is hypocrisy. When Joyland featured an actual khwajasira person, the entire country is up in arms. But we seem to be totally okay with basing our movies and shows on their lives as long as we’re not actually giving them opportunities in the process.”

    Many also criticised Express Entertainment for representing a marginalised community with someone who does not belong to it.

    “Express tv really think they are making difference by representing marginalised community featuring a cis man in mainstream media & capitalising from it? when u could hire someone from the community because Im sure there are talented trans people who deserve this opportunity.”

  • Bollywood set to make biopic on legendary Pakistani host, Begum Nawazish Ali

    Indian streaming platform EORTV has announced that they are in the process of making a biopic based on the life of the queer icon and Pakistani television host Ali Saleem, who was famous for his cross-dressing alter ego Begum Nawazish Ali. His popular talk show ‘Late Nights With Begum Nawazish Ali’ featured interviews with actors, politicians and even religious figures. In 2010, Saleem, along with actress Veena Malik, were the first Pakistanis to take part in the famous reality show ‘Big Boss’.

    Saleem had described himself as gay, bisexual and even transgender.

    According Deepak Panday, the CEO of EORTV, the channel was planning to approach actor Mallika Sherawat for the role. He also elaborated on the reason they had chosen to film this story:

    “This is a strong story, a story of boldness and courage. The character is multifaceted and needed someone as courageous and undaunted as the Begum thyself. I am planning to approach Mallika Sherawat for this role as she would be apt for a fearless performance like this. It is important to create stories like these that can encourage more and more people to be open about their sexuality and sexual preferences. This is going to be a story of an unapologetically fearless man who’s leading a life of his own choice in spite of living in a politically warm environment”.

    He further went on to say:

     “Begum Nawazish Ali’s background and childhood is interesting but the journey he makes in due course of his life is even more interesting. He has interviewed the who’s who from business, politics, entertainment with gusto. He has courted satire and controversy but managed to make a place in the hearts of the common man. His life will make for very compelling content on screen”.