As American lawmakers continue to debate where people should and should not be able to pee Pakistan is moving forward in making sure Trans citizens have property and educational rights.
Legislation is moving forward in Pakistan that will make it illegal to prevent trans people from inheriting property, unlawfully evict them or deny them entry to educational institutions.
On Tuesday, the National Assembly cleared to move forward the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill 2017 as well as a legislation that will make amendments to the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) and Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC).
The bills are set to expand the definition of a trans person in the country, to include “any person whose gender identity and/or gender expression differs from the society norms and cultural expectations based on the sex they were assigned at the time of their birth”, Pakistani media outlet, Dawn, reported.
Making it illegal to prevent trans people in Pakistan from inheriting property, unlawfully evict them from any establishment or deny them entry to educational institutions are the main goals of these amendments.
The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill 2017 will officially recognize an individual’s gender identity as they perceive it. It will also guarantee all fundamental rights outlined in the Constitution to transgender citizens. In addition, proponents intend the bill to guarantee key citizenship rights such as being able to hold public office and the right to vote.
The last time transgender citizens received positive attention from lawmakers was in 2011 when the Supreme Court of Pakistan ruled that passports and computerized national identity cards (CNICs) should include a column for trans people.
h/t: telesurtv.net