Human Rights - Transgender Issues

Picture of Begum Nawazish Ali from this site

Now, I've read that the mullahs in Iran take a fairly tolerant view towards transgender identity (as opposed to homosexuality, which they do, oppose, that is, quite vigorously). However, this story seems to indicate that that may only be the case for male-to-female transgender identity.

At any rate, a court in Pakistan has ordered the arrest of a female-to-male transgender person and his wife. According to the arrestees, he married his wife to save her from being sold to pay her uncle's gambling debts. What kind of fucked-up world is this where a woman may be sold like chattel, but is arrested if she finds a way out of such bondage? This is ridiculous. Pakistan is quite backwards, compared to other Muslim nations, even. Please consider dropping a line to the Pakistani embassy here. I hate to think of the degradation to which they've subjected this young couple. It's fairly obvious that the transgender person has been subjected to a bodily examination, doubtless unwillingly.

An interesting site which discusses gender identity issues in the Islamic world.

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