Hijras The most visible sexual minorityHijras The most visible sexual minorityHijras The most visible sexual minorityHijras The most visible sexual minority

Atharv Nair

Astitva Trust

Hijras The most visible sexual minorityHijras The most visible sexual minorityHijras The most visible sexual minorityHijras The most visible sexual minority

community of Indiacommunity of Indiacommunity of Indiacommunity of India

IntroductionIntroductionIntroductionIntroduction

• Transgender is an umbrella term used to describe people whose gender identity (sense of themselves as man or woman) and/or gender expression differs from that usually associated with their birth sex

• Male-to-female (MTF) TG people• Male-to-female (MTF) TG people

• Female-to-male (FTM) TG people

• ‘Transgender’ – can be a label or an identity

• Subgroups and different terms (MTF TG): Hijras, Thirunangai/Aravani, ShivShakthi, Yellamma, Jogta, etc.

VulnerabilityVulnerabilityVulnerabilityVulnerability

� Poor social economic status

� Prohibitive laws, policies and practices

� Sexual behaviour and sex work

� Mobility and migration

� Inadequate focus on TG/Hijras in prevention services� Inadequate focus on TG/Hijras in prevention services

� Access to Health Systems

� Lack of community ownership and Community led initiatives

� Power structure in the community

Research Centre for Health Economics and Evaluation (ReCHEE)

Law and Social JusticeLaw and Social JusticeLaw and Social JusticeLaw and Social Justice

� Develop action steps toward taking a position on legal recognition of gender identity of

Hijras/TG need to be taken in consultation with Hijras/TG and other key stakeholders.

Getting legal recognition and avoiding ambiguities in the current procedures that issue

identity documents to Hijras/TG are required – as they are connected to basic civil

entitlements such as access to health and public services, right to vote, right to contest

elections, right to education, inheritance rights, and marriage and child adoption.

� The committee may support the NALSA Supreme Court Petition through a state

recommendation submission on legal identity and rights of transgender and hijras.

� Equitable access to services and public spaces: recommended that the government

and those in the administration to articulate and enforce guidelines for non-and those in the administration to articulate and enforce guidelines for non-

discriminatory practices allowing transgenders and hijra to safely access public and

private facilities in their choice of facilities

� National Legal Services Authority

� National Legal Services Authority has proposed to provide free legal aid to transgender

people and to initiate legal literacy classes on the rights of transgender people in

January 2011, however this committee may write to state and district legal services

authority to include transgender/ hijras under the definition of marginalised so that

they can avail free legal aid.

Home � Direct law enforcement and judicial authorities(including police) to set up

special cells to look into human rights abuse(also dealing with incarcerated

transgenders - hijras) and through the Ministry of law look at broadening the

inclusion criteria of existing legal redressal mechanisms like that of free legal aid

by NALSA and its decentralized units, and lok adalats and similar systems of non

formal systems of justice

� Establish a civilian review board or civilian ombudsman committee comprising� Establish a civilian review board or civilian ombudsman committee comprising

judges and lawyers to monitor police stations and ensure that Supreme Court

guidelines on treatment of persons in custody, as established in D. K. Basu vs.

State of West Bengal, are strictly enforced (this is to be inclusive of transgender)

� There is continuing need to educate the police department on the judgment

against sec 377 and hence its application to the TG community.

� To appoint a body for mapping of Hijra / TG population in Maharashtra

Health � Protect and promote the health care needs:

May direct the ministry of health through the MCI and ICMR to clarify the ambiguous legal status of sex reassignment surgery and provide gender transition and Sexual Reassignment Surgery (SRS) services (with proper pre-and post-operation/transition counseling) for free in public hospitals in various parts of Maharashtra

Sensitize and educate health care providers as part of ongoing medical Sensitize and educate health care providers as part of ongoing medical training

Encourage physician practices, medical schools, hospitals, and clinics to broaden any nondiscriminatory statement made to patients, health care workers, or employees to include "sexual orientation, sex, or gender identity" in any nondiscrimination statement.

� It is recommended that a national working committee be set up to look into the

issues of transgenders - hijras and the central and state ministries develop

programs like that of the Tamil Nadu welfare board.

� In Karnataka, the government has issued an order to implement a reservation

quota for TG. TG have been included in the 2A category of the Backward Class

Commission. As a result of this decision, they will be eligible to avail the 15

percent reservation in various government employment and other schemes.

� There is an urgent need for more such social protection / welfare schemes to

be opened up for needy transgenders and hijras, more importantly adequate

outreach and communication is required to enable these services to reach the outreach and communication is required to enable these services to reach the

most marginalized and vulnerable.

� Direct the national skills mission and other concerned authorities to open up

existing schemes to transgenders and put in requisite safe guards to ensure

inclusion and full participation of these groups.

� To set up a separate body like SETHU to provide Domicile and Income

certificates for Hijra / TG community

� To provide separate Pink ration cards for the Hijra/ TG communities

Research Centre for Health Economics and Evaluation (ReCHEE)

EDUCATION

� To provide education and have reservations for the Hijra / TG

in graduate and post graduation courses.

� Appoint special guidance cell at higher secondary levels in

schools for the effeminate students so that the drop out is

less among themless among them

� To provide skill education and other technical education for

Hijra / TG community by providing reservations

Department Issue Recommendations

Skill Development • Providing vocational and entrepreneurship opportunities

(including financial support) to Hijra / TG community,

linking them to skill development and labor departments

• Imparting more need based appropriate skills through

vocational training courses for Hijra / Transgender women.

Housing Due to social

stigma

trasngender /

hijras women

find it hard to

• Assess the housing needs of the community

• Make provisions for providing shelter to old and out of

work Transgender sex workers

• Also setting up old age home a community care center for

the old Hijra / TG’sfind it hard to

get a room on

rent.

the old Hijra / TG’s

• Norms of documentation required for seeking a shelter –

whether as a house on rent or for accessing the benefit of

Gharkul Yojana – be made flexible for the community.

• HIV positive TG women neglect their health, therefore the

government should have well equipped shelter homes for

them

• Curtail the lengthy list of required documents, simplify

procedure and keep the welfare measures free of

conditionality

• Inclusion of Transgenders / Hijras in the Indra Gandhi

Avaas Yojana a nd Rajiv Gandhi Rojgar Yojana

THANK YOUTHANK YOU

Research Centre for Health Economics and Evaluation (ReCHEE)