Karachi's transgender community living in fear of being attacked

• Karachi's transgender people are bing threatened with violence through audio and video messages.
• HRCP calls on Sindh government to take note of "such systematic attempts to marginalise an already vulnerable community and investigate".
• Bindiya Rana, a Pakistani transgender activist and founder of Gender Interactive Alliance, says organised campaign against transgender people launched in May, 2021.

KARACHI: Karachi's transgender community is still living in fear of being attacked.

Threatening audio and video messages are being sent to the transgender community in Karachi, Geo News reported Friday. 

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan has expressed concern over the situation, saying that violence against transgender persons is being incited.

HRCP is alarmed at reports of violence being instigated against the transgender community in Karachi through a wave of threatening audio/video messages, the Commission wrote on Twitter.

HRCP called on the Sindh government to take note of "such systematic attempts to marginalise an already vulnerable community and investigate".

According to Geo News, vulgar language has been used in these audio and video messages that have been made in Baldia, Orangi, Landhi and different areas of Karachi.

The people in the videos are threatening transgender person with serious consequences.

Bindiya Rana, a Pakistani transgender activist and the founder of Gender Interactive Alliance (GIA), said that an organised campaign against transgender people was launched in May 2021.

Read more: Elderly transgender person shot dead in Karachi's Korangi area

More than 200 threatening video and audio messages have been received, Rana said, adding that these messages have created a sense of fear and insecurity among transgender people in Karachi.

The GIA has informed the Joint Action Committee for People's Rights about the messages in a letter.

On March 31, a transgender person was attacked and tortured at her home in Aziz Bhatti. An FIR of the incident was registered at the Aziz Bhatti police station on March 31.

The accused was arrested today after three-and-a-half months. The accused will be produced in court tomorrow and a remand will be sought, said the investigation officer