Pakistani Eunuchs Today
Posted: Fri Dec 28, 2007 5:08 pm
Just discovered this one in the news discussing contemporary eunuchs in an important Moslem country. I've noted my disbelief in one of the statements in the article, though.
Govt grants no special representation
to eunuchs in assemblies
* Around 1.5 million eunuchs in the country
[Since the population of Pakistan is 165 million, if true, this number would mean that about one male in 50 or 60 in the country has been castrated. I dont believe this to be accurate. J.A.]
* APEA says eunuchs harassed at mens election booths
* NADRA spokesman says providing special treatment to eunuchs could create trouble for others
By Hasan Ali
LAHORE: The government has not fulfilled the demands of eunuchs to register them as a third sex and to reserve seats in the national and provincial assemblies of the country. This is not fair to many members of the community, the All Pakistan Eunuchs Association (APEA) told Daily Times on Tuesday.
APEA also said that there are around 1.5 million eunuchs living in Pakistan and they are all treated as male voters while most of the eunuchs prefer to be recognised as females. The association said that it would be quite difficult for eunuchs to vote at mens election booths.
Sunny, the representative of the APEA said that a delegation of the association had met with the government officials before the announcement of the general elections schedule and asked them to reserve seats in the National Assembly as well as the provincial assemblies of the country, as the eunuchs wanted representation in the assemblies. The government has refused our demands to a plea by saying that Pakistani eunuchs are enjoying the same status like other citizens and they can use their vote to elect any member of national and provincial assembly, Sunny said adding that the APEA had been demanding the government to grant seats for the eunuchs for more than one year but no one was ready to give the special sex its reserved seats.
Make fun: We cannot cast votes, as we are considered males and whenever we go to cast votes the men make fun of us, he said adding that all the eunuchs prefer to be registered as eunuchs (third sex), however, the government was not ready to accept their demands.
I tried to cast [my] vote in local government elections but was met with a miserable position when some youngsters teased me in the election booth, said Shumila, one such Eunuch.
However, the government officials have different views. They said that the eunuchs can get elected from any legislative forum like other citizens, because neither they belong to a minority group nor are they considered as females. The federal government has refused to reserve seats for eunuchs in national as well as provincial assemblies, and if eunuchs want to get involved in national politics, they should contest elections like other people, said an Interior Ministry official.
Eunuchs are considered males in Pakistan, not females, at the time they are issued national identity cards, he said, adding that therefore they could not be given special treatment. Eunuchs have not won a single seat at the national, provincial or district level in the history of Pakistan, however in few areas eunuchs have won the seats of councillors at the union council level by contesting local body elections.
The APEA, during their convention at Kot Adu last year have also demanded the quarters concerned to recognise the dance and singing as a Bachelors degree besides mentioning their sex as a eunuch in their Computerized National Identity Cards (CNICs).
Create trouble: An official of the National Registration and Database Authority (NADRA), Nabeel Najam, said that the government would not regard eunuchs as a special sex and would not mention them as eunuchs in their CNICs because it could create trouble for others. In case of any printing error or mistake, if any other citizens is mentioned as a eunuch, then there will be severe trouble for NADRA, he said adding that errors could not be ruled out especially during feeding the data. Although, there are some female eunuchs also, but NADRA has always registered them as male to avoid any trouble, he said.
Thus, NADRA technically cannot handle the issue at least now, he said adding that an APEA delegation had met senior government officials but their demands could not be accepted for various reasons. Nabeel said that he was also aware of another demand made by the eunuchs of receiving free music education. He said that government officials were of the view that eunuchs were as free as any other citizen in Pakistan and therefore could receive education at any educational institute of the country.
A spokesman of the election commission of Pakistan, Arshad Ali Kamal said that if the eunuchs want their representation in the legislative forum of the country, they should contest the elections on general seats. We can consider them as a male citizens of the country and a large number of eunuchs have cast their votes during previous elections, he added.
Tuesday, December 25, 2007
Daily Times (Pakistan)
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.as ... 007_pg7_24
Govt grants no special representation
to eunuchs in assemblies
* Around 1.5 million eunuchs in the country
[Since the population of Pakistan is 165 million, if true, this number would mean that about one male in 50 or 60 in the country has been castrated. I dont believe this to be accurate. J.A.]
* APEA says eunuchs harassed at mens election booths
* NADRA spokesman says providing special treatment to eunuchs could create trouble for others
By Hasan Ali
LAHORE: The government has not fulfilled the demands of eunuchs to register them as a third sex and to reserve seats in the national and provincial assemblies of the country. This is not fair to many members of the community, the All Pakistan Eunuchs Association (APEA) told Daily Times on Tuesday.
APEA also said that there are around 1.5 million eunuchs living in Pakistan and they are all treated as male voters while most of the eunuchs prefer to be recognised as females. The association said that it would be quite difficult for eunuchs to vote at mens election booths.
Sunny, the representative of the APEA said that a delegation of the association had met with the government officials before the announcement of the general elections schedule and asked them to reserve seats in the National Assembly as well as the provincial assemblies of the country, as the eunuchs wanted representation in the assemblies. The government has refused our demands to a plea by saying that Pakistani eunuchs are enjoying the same status like other citizens and they can use their vote to elect any member of national and provincial assembly, Sunny said adding that the APEA had been demanding the government to grant seats for the eunuchs for more than one year but no one was ready to give the special sex its reserved seats.
Make fun: We cannot cast votes, as we are considered males and whenever we go to cast votes the men make fun of us, he said adding that all the eunuchs prefer to be registered as eunuchs (third sex), however, the government was not ready to accept their demands.
I tried to cast [my] vote in local government elections but was met with a miserable position when some youngsters teased me in the election booth, said Shumila, one such Eunuch.
However, the government officials have different views. They said that the eunuchs can get elected from any legislative forum like other citizens, because neither they belong to a minority group nor are they considered as females. The federal government has refused to reserve seats for eunuchs in national as well as provincial assemblies, and if eunuchs want to get involved in national politics, they should contest elections like other people, said an Interior Ministry official.
Eunuchs are considered males in Pakistan, not females, at the time they are issued national identity cards, he said, adding that therefore they could not be given special treatment. Eunuchs have not won a single seat at the national, provincial or district level in the history of Pakistan, however in few areas eunuchs have won the seats of councillors at the union council level by contesting local body elections.
The APEA, during their convention at Kot Adu last year have also demanded the quarters concerned to recognise the dance and singing as a Bachelors degree besides mentioning their sex as a eunuch in their Computerized National Identity Cards (CNICs).
Create trouble: An official of the National Registration and Database Authority (NADRA), Nabeel Najam, said that the government would not regard eunuchs as a special sex and would not mention them as eunuchs in their CNICs because it could create trouble for others. In case of any printing error or mistake, if any other citizens is mentioned as a eunuch, then there will be severe trouble for NADRA, he said adding that errors could not be ruled out especially during feeding the data. Although, there are some female eunuchs also, but NADRA has always registered them as male to avoid any trouble, he said.
Thus, NADRA technically cannot handle the issue at least now, he said adding that an APEA delegation had met senior government officials but their demands could not be accepted for various reasons. Nabeel said that he was also aware of another demand made by the eunuchs of receiving free music education. He said that government officials were of the view that eunuchs were as free as any other citizen in Pakistan and therefore could receive education at any educational institute of the country.
A spokesman of the election commission of Pakistan, Arshad Ali Kamal said that if the eunuchs want their representation in the legislative forum of the country, they should contest the elections on general seats. We can consider them as a male citizens of the country and a large number of eunuchs have cast their votes during previous elections, he added.
Tuesday, December 25, 2007
Daily Times (Pakistan)
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.as ... 007_pg7_24