TRANSPHOBIC attitudes, conflicting emotions among men and easy access to weapons have turned parts of the country, especially KP, into a deathtrap for trans people. Latest figures of crimes against the community and the grim prospects of justice for them should leave the authorities and law enforcement red-faced. According to documents, of the 267 cases of violence in KP against trans people recorded in the past five years, only one resulted in a conviction; KP Police registered 17 incidents in 2019, 40 in 2020, 61 in 2021, 88 in 2022 and 61 in 2023. It is clear that institutionalised discrimination has not merely increased the trans community’s susceptibility to abuse, which has often proved fatal, it has also ensured that accountability and due process are denied to them. Lawmakers were informed of the aforementioned conviction in 2022; the government had promised “corrective measures”.

The failure to establish a safe and sensitive environment for citizens, particularly for the powerless, is rooted in the lack of acceptance. Even in modern times, when the world is formulating new policies and opportunities to promote equality and security, our policymakers still see this community as a slur, making political commitment to justice for transgender people a distant dream. For this reason, trans persons are often afraid to approach the police. Some 60pc of those who do take legal action end up opting for out-of-court settlements due to socioeconomic pressures. In fact, scores of families are forced to compromise with murderers for settlements. The government should know that such a prejudiced environment favours crime without punishment. Therefore, criminal laws must be tightened and the state made a party in murder cases so that transgender citizens in Pakistan do not become victims of their own vulnerabilities and social intimidation. We cannot continue with discriminatory laws, and lopsided police investigations, because all citizens, in life and in death, are equal.

Published in Dawn, August 15th, 2024