By Saher Baloch

Karachi: Members of a transsexual organisation, GIA, and officials of the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) have been at loggerheads for the past few months.

The bone of contention is Nadra’s demand that every transsexual applying for a Computerised National Identity Card (CNIC) undergo a medical examination – a stipulation which the transexuals have referred to as discriminatory, and refused to accept.

“If they want us to be medically examined, then every man and woman applying for CNICs should be checked as well,” said GIA member Sarah Gill. With a hint of frustration creeping into her voice, she added that she failed to understand the ruckus over their identity. “It is quite obvious that we are different,” she said.

Ironically, it was a move aimed to curb discrimination against transexuals which led to this situation in the first place. Dr Aslam Khaki, a jurist at the Federal Shariat Court, had, in 2009, filed a petition in the Supreme Court (SC) of Pakistan, seeking to highlight the predicament of what he referred to as the “most neglected section of society.” He said that transsexuals, who are often disowned by their own families, are vulnerable and cannot defend themselves against injustices meted out to them. A majority of them are harassed daily by policemen, and sexually abused as well. “Now with the SC ruling, any FIR filed by the police against a transsexual will first go to the SC registrar, and then Inspector General (IG) Punjab for investigation,” he said.

Over the CNIC battle, however, he is adamant. The clause [to medically examine transsexuals] was added to the SC judgment in order to ensure that the person in question is a transsexual by birth and “not by some operation,” he maintains, adding that transexuals present in court at the time had actually insisted on it. “They had demanded that they be treated differently from posers,” Dr Khaki said.

Sindh Planning and Social Welfare Department Deputy Director Shamim Sheikh concurs. Karachi, at the moment, has 3,500 registered transsexuals, and the procedure to issue CNICs to them has been outlined by the SC, she said, adding that the SC’s rules are justified and not discriminatory.

Under the current policy therefore, transexuals who have received a medical certificate from the social welfare department will receive CNICs classifying them as “eunuchs” under the sex category. Sources within Nadra said that discussions are also under way to further classify eunuchs as “she-males”.

Giving in a little, Gill said that if the authorities wait for posers to come forward for medical examinations, they have a daunting task at hand. She proposes an alternative. “We know our community better then anyone else, so we should be given a chance to help the authorities in this matter,” Gill said. “We’ll help them differentiate genuine transexuals from those who are faking it.” This, she says, will be a less time-consuming process for the authorities concerned, and a less invasive one for transsexuals.
Source: The News
Date:5/10/2010