Protesters demand end to violence against transgender people in KP

Condemning the murder of a transgender person and dismembering her body in Peshawar on Thursday, Karachi’s transgender community organised a protest on Monday and demanded protection and rights for the community in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

The Gender Interactive Alliance, a Karachi-based group working for the rights of transgender people, organised the protest outside Karachi Press Club. The protesters chanted slogans loudly, demanding of the government to ensure protection of the community members across the country, especially Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Nazo, a transgender woman, was shot dead on Thursday night in Peshawar and her body was hacked to pieces. Bindiya Rana, the GIA president and transgender community leader, said that there was an alarming rise in violence and hate crimes against transgender people in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. “The killing of transgender persons in the province has become a routine now. Almost every week, we get to hear such sad news,” Rana told The News after the protest.

According to Transaction Alliance, a non-governmental group working on transgender rights, more than 50 cases of violence against transgender persons had been reported in the province.

“Protection of a transgernder person in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has become challenging and the government and police failed to provide them security,” Rana said. She also urged the chief justice of Pakistan to take notice of the killing of Nazo and hear the concerns of the community.