Mohammad Ali, known as Kabootri, is a 35-year-old transgender from Jacobabad, Sindh. His parents threw him out when he was 13 and since then he has lived and grown up with other transgenders. “It is humiliating and difficult to overcome the pain of being rejected and thrown out by your family,” they say. “When you are young, you just want to enjoy life, but the miseries of old age begin to loom as you go grow older and it is even worse if you are a transgender. When you become weak with age and start falling ill, you feel that you are cursed and not born normal like everyone else.”
Sometimes Kabootri visit their parents and siblings, but their lukewarm and negligent attitude is disappointing. “I want to reunite with my family respectably, but it is not possible,” they say with a sigh.
Another 29-year-old transgender Salahuddin, known as Laila is from Shikarpur and fears loneliness when they get old and are unable to earn through begging or attending functions. “So far I am doing well with my chellas [students or followers in the transgender heirarchy] and I am optimistic that they will look after me and not leave me alone, but I am not at peace.”
Gulabo Fakir, a 45-year old guru born in Ratodero, district Larkana who bid farewell to their family at the age of 13 and moved to Sukkur to live with other transgenders, agrees with Laila. “An old guru with health issues, is dependent on the chellas to look after them, but they need to go out to work and lead their own lives, so the guru is left at the mercy of God, and finally dies a miserable death,” says Fakir.
Faiz Mohammad known as Faizi Jan is a transgender guru [ustad or teacher the transgender hierarchy] in Jacobabad who believes that transgenders are a creation of God with different abilities, and should be treated just like other people in the society. “Like differently-abled children, transgenders are born unique and must be accepted by their families, neighbours and above all the society,” says Faizi. “Our parents and siblings are reluctant to own us, as they are afraid of what people would say. When a baby is born with a certain disability, the parents don’t throw it out, instead they consider it a special child. Similar is the case of a transgender. Why do our parents fear the reaction of close relatives, neighbours and friends? This fear and its manifestation as anger and disappointment is why we have to part ways with our families and start living with other transgenders.”
Faizi Jan who wishes to go for Hajj and Umrah, trains newcomers to beg and dance at festive events. “We keep ourselves informed about a newborn baby in the neighbourhood and other areas of the city, so we can go there and celebrate the new born,” they say. “In return they give us money.”
Saba Khan who is known as Sakhi from Sukkur was also forced to leave home due to their families’ negative behaviour. Since the last four years they have been living with other transgenders in a rented house. “My family’s attitude broke my heart,” says Sakhi with a gloomy smile. “Otherwise I would never have moved out. But now I am happy and doing well, although it is sad that my guru, I has become old and cannot work anymore. All of my guru’s chellas respect our guru as a parent, and we will continue to serve them as much as we can. My biggest wish is to be able to my own place to live and I am sure that it will happen one day.”
Sanaullah, known as Sana is a young transgender from Kandiaro who decided to break stereotypes. Instead of getting trained by a guru to beg and dance, they opted for education. After completing their Bachelor’s degree in commerce as a private student, Sana has applied for several clerical jobs in private companies and NGOs, but to no avail. “I started applying right after graduation, but I couldn’t get a job,” they say. “I am not backed by an influential officer or politician, perhaps that is what it is needed to get a job. An NGO called me for an interview, which I cleared, and I was asked to come back the next day. When I went, I was told by the manager that they had appointed someone else. But I am not going to give up and will keep applying until I find a suitable job.”
Suhail aka Suhana went a step further to privately accomplish a Masters in Islamic Culture, after a Bachelors in IT and Education, and is now job hunting. They belong to a middle-class family of Kandiaro completed their intermediate while still living with their parents. “My parents were against me meeting other transgenders, but how could I stop seeing my friends,” they said.
Suhana elaborates the challenges they face as trans people. “First our siblings wonder what’s wrong with us, then the neighbours mock us, and then other sections of society pass insulting remarks at us,” they say. “Wherever we go, people make fun of us as though we are not human beings. When I went to school and college or university, to fill examination forms or for some inquiry, I would hear the words zankha, disco and so on. But that’s not all. When we beg on the streets or attend a function, people want us to sleep with them for 400 to 500 rupees. It is impossible to make ends meet with money from begging or dancing so we resort to becoming sex workers. Being unskilled and uneducated, how else can we generate an income? Those of us who work at shops or restaurants are also mistreated in the same way. Some of us have tried to set up beauty salons, but women seldom visit our salon, only men and transgenders become our clients. This is why we feel that we are an unwanted segment of society and people are not ready to accept us, except to sleep with us.”
Roshni, 22 is one of Suhana’s chellas is a sex worker who supports their family. “My father kept me chained up at home to stop them from meeting other transpersons,” they say. “One day my mother freed me and I escaped to Karachi and started living with guru Shama. A year later, I moved to Sargodha to guru Shabana. When I came to know that my father had passed away, I moved back to Kandiaro.”
Fakir Mohammad aka Karishma, a 50-year-old guru from Jacobabad feels that some trans persons become sex workers because they get exploited and a vicious cycle begins. “People think we are sinners because some of us are sex workers,” they say with misty eyes. “Some willingly become sex workers, but there are many of us who want to live with dignity. You cannot blame the whole community for sins of a minority.”
Recently, after realising that an educated Suhana could provide financial support, Suhana’s father reconciled and took them back home. “Now I spend time with my chellas in the day, go home at night and my parents have no objection,” they say. “I have applied for a few jobs, but I do wonder that when I have a job, who will manage my 40 chellas who I train to beg and dance? They earn 1200 to 1500 rupees per day and give me my due share.”
As we talked, a gentleman overheard our conversation and came over to introduce himself as Munawar Gill, the CEO of Riverside Development Organisation (RDO), an non-profit NGO that works to support and elevate marginalised communities, women and especially children to live a respectable life. He offered Suhana a job at his branch office in Kandiaro, which they gratefully accepted.
Suhana dresses in women’s wear, but for working in an office, they would be happy to dress up as required even if it means wearing men’s clothes. “Our CNICs record our gender as male, and sometimes transgender or khwaja sira is added in brackets,” they say. “But apart from discrimination and marginalisation in society, our biggest setback is that we are not allowed by the government to go for Hajj or Umrah, because we are transgenders.”
Recently, an iftar dinner was organised at the RDO office in Sukkur, where dry grocery, hygiene kits, mosquito nets, blankets and Eid gifts were distributed among more than a hundred transgenders by RDO and Community Organised Relief Efforts (a US-based NGO). Faizi Jan, Gulabo Fakir and other gurus along with their hundreds of students arrived from Sukkur, Jacobabad, Shikarpur, Larkana and Naushahro Feroze to attend the event.
Speaking as the chief guest, Essa Khan the assistant commissioner Sukkur city, affirmed that transgenders are a reality that must be accepted. “God created human beings and the transgenders are humans just like everyone else,” agreed Father Munir Bashir, reciting verses from the Bible. “Humanity comes first and hence we are bound to respect each other.”
Emphasising on proper and continuous counselling of transgenders, Dr Muneer, physician and organiser of free medical camps with RDO suggested that the government should arrange screening of transgender for Hepatitis B, C and HIV, which will not only benefit transgenders, but the society as well. “Unfortunately in our society people mostly mock and criticise the transgender community, but they forget that God has created them the way they are.”
As an initiative to mitigate the suffering of the old and ailing transgenders, Essa Khan plans to discuss with higher ups the screening of transgenders for deadly viruses, and to establish old homes for them at district level to provide them shelter, food and medical facilities.
Not by leaps and bounds, but by taking baby steps, the transgender community in Sindh is moving away from their traditional pattern of begging on the streets and dancing for an income and breaking the cycle to pursue education. They have CNICs that registers their identity, which is steadily building its own tiny space in society as acceptance grows through awareness campaigns, films and media. But the society needs to make a bigger and better place for trans persons, one that allows them to live with dignity.
Rejected by parents and thrown out of their homes to fend for themselves at a tender age leaves them with grave PTSD issues. Other than a warm welcome by gurus in their typical set up, where they cherish acceptance and family-type bonding, there is no mental care available for them. An issue of health care for seniors in their community is also rearing its ugly head which needs to be addressed by the authorities and the society.
Last year, in its bid to empower more trans persons in society, the Punjab government opened the first transgender public school in Lahore. Earlier, three transgender schools were set up in Multan, Bahawalpur, and DG Khan to educate and teach skills.
As per the highly controversial 2017 census, which was also rejected by the transgender community, the second highest population of transgender people is in Sindh at 2,527 or 24%. So the onus is on the government to pull its socks up and take the initiative for an act or a bill to either mandate educational institutions to follow inclusivity and enroll transgender students in the mainstream education or set up ways, means and space for them to safely pursue education. This would begin uplifting the transgender community by empowering them with education and skills, and at a broader level, it would contribute to the society.
Sarfaraz Memon is a freelance journalist and contributor based in Sukkur. All facts and information are the responsibility of the writer.