January 29, 2024
By Laiba Hussan
PESHAWAR
With the general elections now only 11 days away, candidates are intensifying their campaigns. Amongst members of major political parties and independents, khwaja siras across Pakistan are also vying to clinch seats in the government. Two prominent khwaja siras partaking in the electoral race are Sobia Khan, a Peshawar-based radio jockey associated with the Tribal News Network running for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly, and Nayyab Ali, an international award-winning rights activist from Islamabad contesting for a seat in the National Assembly.
On a petition filed by Sobia Khan, the Peshawar High Court (PHC) issued directives to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to provide separate booths to transgender voters. According to the khwaja sira community, this step will ensure that they are able to safely exercise their right to vote.
Katrina Khan, a khwaja sira from Peshawar, told Voicepk.net that in contrast she was unable to vote in the 2018 general elections because there was no separate booth for transgender people.
“I and a few friends of mine went to cast our vote in 2018 but the line was too long, so we went over to the women’s section. Everybody laughed at us so we went back to the men’s section where people began insulting us. It got so bad that eventually a mob surrounded us. We somehow managed to escape,” she related. Because of the incident, there were other transgenders who felt it too unsafe to visit the polling station.
Sobia Khan explained that she had approached the PHC to clarify whether her community will be able to cast their votes in the women’s polling booths or men’s, the presiding judge issued orders to have separate booths for transgender people.
“I am contesting the elections, so there will be men, women and transgender people who will be voting for me. If there is no system in place to accommodate the transgender community, then how will they be able to cast their vote?” she posited. “It is my appeal to the Election Commission to have a separate system for the transgender community. If there is a booth in every station, then every transgender can easily cast their vote.”
High court advocate Nouman Muhib Kakakhel expressed his view that separate polling booths are not just a convenience for khwaja siras but a means of their enfranchisement.
“A separate polling booth is a necessity in order to protect them from harassment and ensure their security,” he said. “Security is a major concern for khwaja siras. If they are redirected to men’s polling booths, they fear being harassed or insulted which can lead to a poor turnout. This is a violation of the Constitution as well as the Transgender Act 2018.”