Canada
This article was added by the user . TheWorldNews is not responsible for the content of the platform.

Pakistan launches anti-harassment hotline for trans people

Author of the article:

The Associated Press

The Associated Press

Pakistani transgender persons hold a demonstration demanding for their basic rights, in Hyderabad, Pakistan, Friday, Sept. 30, 2022. Pakistani authorities on Friday in a major move launched a special hotline for the country's largely ignored transgenders in an effort aimed at protecting them from growing incidents of harassment, a government official said.
Pakistani transgender persons hold a demonstration demanding for their basic rights, in Hyderabad, Pakistan, Friday, Sept. 30, 2022. Pakistani authorities on Friday in a major move launched a special hotline for the country's largely ignored transgenders in an effort aimed at protecting them from growing incidents of harassment, a government official said. Photo by Pervez Masih /THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan on Friday launched a hotline for transgender people in an effort to protect them from discrimination and harassment, a senior government official said.

Trans people in Pakistan are considered outcasts by many, especially in conservative areas in the country, where they are often sexually abused, assaulted and even murdered. They also hesitate to enroll in regular schools to avoid discrimination.

Sign up to receive the daily top stories from the National Post, a division of Postmedia Network Inc.

By clicking on the sign up button you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. You may unsubscribe any time by clicking on the unsubscribe link at the bottom of our emails. Postmedia Network Inc. | 365 Bloor Street East, Toronto, Ontario, M4W 3L4 | 416-383-2300

Salman Sufi, an adviser to Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, said in a tweet that the much-awaited hotline for the protection of trans people from discrimination and harassment had been set up and was live.

The hotline is connected to top police officers and the Ministry of Human Rights, he said.

“We are glad that this so-called hotline has been set up for us,” Almas Bobby, a spokesperson for transgender people in Pakistan, told The Associated Press by phone. Bobby said in most cases of harassment, trans people are either beaten, arrested or publicly harassed by police across the country.

“How can we can call on this hotline when our phones are snatched? When we are arrested like a robber from wedding parties where we have to perform and earn? Who harasses us the most?” Bobby said. “Yes, indeed, the police. And we will have to call the police to seek justice.”

The hotline comes as the government tries to pass an amendment in its transgender rights bill, which will let trans people choose their gender identity for previously issued government documents, educational certificates and national identity cards.

But the proposed amendments have caused controversy, with hardline clerics opposing them.

Although Pakistan has in recent years made some progress on transgender rights in the Muslim-majority country, human rights experts say a lot is still to be done to ensure recognition of trans people on a social level.

Bobby estimates there are around 10,000 trans people living in Pakistan.