Media role vital for ensuring transgenders’ rights | The Asian Age Online, Bangladesh
Speakers at a meeting here today viewed the proactive and sensible role of both the print and electronic media has become crucial to ensure the legitimate rights of the third gender people as they are the integral parts of the society. Ensuring rights of health, education, social and legal of the transgender people is very important for improving their living and livelihood condition, reports BSS.
The society, as a whole and the journalists in particular, should come forward with a positive attitude toward the extremely socially excluded people for their coexistence in society. Diner Alo Hijra Sangha (DAHS), a non-government development organization working for the welfare of the socially excluded people, hosted the meeting under the project titled “Women’s Voice and Leadership Bangladesh” at Chef Garden Restaurant in Rajshahi city.
DAHS has been implementing the four-year programme styled ‘Leadership and Empowerment of Transgender’ in Rajshahi city and nine upazilas of the district since March last. Project Coordinator Afsana Tanzum Irani gave a salient feature of the project along with its aims, objectives and implementation strategy during her concept paper presentation in the meeting.
She said the project is being implemented in association with Manusher Jonno Foundation and Global Affairs Canada for improving living and livelihood condition of 1,200 transgender people. With DAHS President Mohona in the chair, the meeting was addressed, among others, by its advisers Shaheen Akhter Rainy, Akbarul Hassan Millat and Sharif Suman.
Mohona also highlighted the activities of the organizations for elevating the living and livelihood condition of transgender people in the city. She pointed out that the members of the community are always subjected to negligence and repression in every sphere of life including family and society.
The Hijra community is deprived of several rights, she added. She also said the present government, particularly Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is very much positive towards solving the existing problems of the Hijra community. The public in general have a very narrow mindset regarding genderless people and they should change their mentality. Being rejected by families, many grew up hating their bodies, and fall victim to depression, drug addiction, violence and suicide, he added. Around 2.5 percent people of the total population were genderless, she said, adding that time has come to ensure their basic rights.
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