Pakistan Opened New Public School For Trans People

Pakistan opened a new public school exclusively for trans people, the second such institution in the South Asian Country.

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The government-funded school started functioning last week. Around 20 transgender persons are enrolled in the school established by the government-run Literacy Department in Lodhran district in Punjab province of western Pakistan.

“Transgender school established in Lodhran city under Literacy department. Under Usman Buzdar’s leadership Punjab will grow and prosper inshallah,” said Chief spokesperson of the chief minister of Punjab, Shahbaz Gill.  

District Officer of Literacy department, Shazia Noreen, supervises the institution. The Lodhran Deputy Commissioner said that this initiative was taken to provide education to transgender community with an aim to enable them in playing their role in the national development.

To promote inclusiveness, last year, the School Education Department (SED) in Punjab province of Pakistan,  directed district education authorities to ensure equal treatment of transgender children in both government and private schools across the province.

According to the local media, the Punjab province in West Pakistan is home to around 64 percent of Pakistan’s trans population. Due to trans phobia, the majority of them are forced to beg, participate in sex work to earn their livelihood.

Non-government organization Exploring Future Foundation (EFF) helped to build the curriculum of the school.

“We will be providing skill-based training and curriculum to the transgender community that has enrolled with us,” EFF managing director, Moizzah Tariq said.

Last year, Pakistani parliament passed a historic law which guarantees the basic right for trans people.

The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act allows people to identify themselves as male, female or non-binary and to have that identity on official documents like passport and identity cards.