Det tredje køn, hijra, der er udbredt i mange sydasiatiske lande, er nu officielt blevet anerkendt som et separat køn af regeringen i Bangladesh. Det er en sejr for befolkningsgruppen, der i mange lande udsættes for diskrimination.
Hijras, a South Asian feminine gender identity that some people who are born male or intersex adopt, will now be considered as a separate gender in Bangladesh, allowing them to identify themselves as hijra on official documents such as passports, Global Voices reports.
The country’s prime minister announced the government’s decision on 11 November, 2013, on the heels of Germany’s announcement that it will begin to offer a third gender option on birth certificates.
There are currently at least 10,000 hijras living in the country. The decision is a victory for hijras, a type of third gender who identify as neither male nor female, throughout the country.
These individuals experience abuse of their rights from family and society at large, such as being forced to live together in secluded communities. Hijra organizations have demanded official recognition as a third gender.
This article was originally published by Global Voices Online, a website that translates and reports on blogs from around the world.
