Pakistani transgender community rejects federal budget 2020

The Pakistani transgender community considers federal budget 2020-21 another in a long line of injustices perpetrated against them.

“First, our numbers were under represented in the last population consensus, now neither any provincial nor the federal budget have fixed any amount to spend on our welfare,” Nayab Ali said while speaking on SAMAA TV’s morning show Naya Din on Wednesday.

Ali is a transgender women and one of the leading representatives of the trans community in Pakistan. In February 2019, she received an international award that honours those who work for a better future for LGBT+ people.

“You can’t make the coronavirus an excuse for this. Are we not equal citizens of Pakistan?” asked Ali.

She cited the Holy Quran, saying that vulnerable people in your society should be supported by others, especially the State itself.

In 2019, the Punjab government allocated around Rs200 billion for the welfare of transgender people. Ali said that even that amount was not spent on her community. “It feels as if we are being cornered every time.”