The madrasa is an important milestone for the transgender community in the Muslim country, where transgender people face ostracism, even though there is no official restriction on them attending religious schools or praying at mosques. Transgender people turn to wrongdoing,” Khan, 34, said, as other transgender people, their heads similarly covered, swayed back and forth behind her, reciting Quran verses. Nonetheless, the transgender remain on the margins in the country, and often have to resort to begging, dancing and prostitution to make a living. The madrasa could help trans people assimilate into mainstream society, Islamabad Deputy Commissioner Hamza Shafqaat told Reuters. A religious school for transgender people has opened in Dhaka, the capital of nearby Bangladesh, and last year a Christian transgender group started its own church in Pakistan’s bustling southern port city of Karachi.

Source: Pakistan Today March 22, 2021 07:07 UTC