Armed Men Beat Trans Women in Pakistan’s Capital

The man and his three sons threatened to kill them if they didn't flee the region.

by Jeff Taylor

Four men attacked transgender women in Pakistan’s capital city of Karachi on Sunday, threatening to kill them.

A man and his three sons entered the home of two of the victims, identified as Noor and Nargis, and beat them with sticks, Samma TV reports.

The men also attacked other members of the trans community, threatening to kill them if they didn’t leave the region.

Transgender activists staged a protest in response outside the Malir Press Club, calling for justice and announcing plans to stage a sit-in on the National Highway if the men were not arrested.

While there have been some advances in the country for trans people, like 2017’s Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill, allowing individuals to change the gender markers on official documents, and the opening of both a school and a retirement home specifically for the community, there remains an epidemic of violence. Nearly 60 trans people are known to have been killed in the country since 2015.

In February, three trans women were shot while fending off a sexual assault, and in May, a transgender woman who had been hired to perform at a wedding was murdered because she couldn’t make change.