Dist trans protection centres in the offing

Social service organisations offer help in training

LAHORE:

Punjab Police has decided to set up centres in the districts across the province to provide legal and social protection to the members of the transgender community.

Information Technology DIG Ahsan Younis will be responsible for launching the project and making the centres functional throughout the province.

The decision was taken after a discussion on protection of the transgender community's rights at the Central Police Office. Organisations working to protect the rights of the community, civil society workers and transgender people participated in the session.

ASP Shahr Bano gave a briefing about the programme initiated by Punjab Police to help the transgender community, while DIG Younis talked about the establishment and working of the first protection centre established in Rawalpindi. He said the canter had started functioning three years ago in the women's police station of Rawalpindi. Now, on the direction of Punjab IG Dr Usman Anwar, the scope of this project will be extended to all the districts of the province so that the problems of the community can be solved,” he added.

Psychology Professor Saad Malik said the members of the transgender community had to face sexist behaviour firstly in their homes, when parents found out about the gender of their child, they considered it a burden and leave them helpless. “This behaviour leads to psychological murder of these children, from which they sink into the mire of deprivation and misery. Such persons deserve special help and attention and this programme of Punjab Police will ensure special assistance to the transgender community,” he added.

Representatives of the Fountain House and Akhuwat Foundation said transgender persons suffered from feelings of inferiority and fear throughout their lives. They need psychological guidance to remove their fears. The organisations offered to play a role in training ‘victim support officers’

Dawood Abdullah, Zaini Chaudhry, transgender Reem Sharif and Dr Abdul Farooq form the AIDS Control Programme also expressed their views.

IG Anwar said Punjab Police was actively striving to protect the rights of all weak and subjugated sections of the society, including the transgender community.

In the protection centres, the members of the transgender community will be provided legal assistance, social protection and complete awareness and guidance regarding all their problems, he announced.

The IG said the protection of self-respect of the transgender community would be ensured and coordination would be improved with private institutions, Technical Education and Vocational Training Authority and the labour department to help the transgender persons become productive and skilled citizens.

He said the members of the transgender community deserved special attention and treatment so that the sense of deprivation and fear found in them could be removed to the extent possible. Dr Anwar said transgender people would be given priority in jobs in police offices, while no effort would be spared to solve their other problems, including economic exploitation.

He said the establishment of police protection centres would not require additional resources. They will be activated in the existing offices and a network will be created of the centers with organisations working for the transgender community.

The IG said MoUs would be signed with various organisations to help and facilitate the transgender community.

Violence against transgender persons in the country has been rampant. A member of the community was raped in the Sundar area of the provincial capital during the past week and when a friend intervened to protect her, she was stabbed.

Some videos showing violence against the community have also gone viral, including one recorded in Sialkot a few years back.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 28^th, 2023.