Violence Against Transgender People in Malaysia

Do you know what is transgender? Transgender is a phrase or name that bring in many ways that a person’s sex or identity changes to their opposite gender or does not corresponding with their birth sex. There are lots of different terms of transgender people. Transgender people state out their sex or gender identity in several ways. For example, some changes their dressing styles according to the gender they wish, their behaviour and body gestures also changes, to live their life as the gender that feels comfortable for them. For instance, some people consumes hormone changes pills or go for surgery to change their certain body parts to fully change to the gender they wants. Malaysia Islamic Development Department (JAKIM), claimed that number of transgender people from 1988 to 2018 increased from 10000 people to 30000 people. Malaysia Islamic Development Department (JAKIM) assume that the population of transgender grew 12. 4% every year. This indicates the rate of transgender people has increased since 1988 and this can lead to many issues especially religion.

As we know Islam is the major religion in our country and in Islam, transgender community has been prohibited by Islamic law. There are also other issues about the transgender in Malaysia which has been arguing and debated widespread either on the internet, social media, protest, or NGOs. Recently, Miss Nisha Ayub has brought the transgender issue to Malaysia Islamic Development Department (JAKIM) and received many critism from the Malaysian societies to protect them in term of violence, work discrimination and cross dress. All these critisms made these transgender people eagerly fights for their rights. For example, during Women`s day, the LGBT community gathered at the Dataran Pahlawan and provoked the government to recognise their community. As a human being, we should have the sense of humanity in ourselves to this community and protect their human right but at the same time, the transgender community must know that they have their own boundary to express their gender identity but yet there are several transgender people still showing off their gender identity to gain attention and to encourage others to be like them which this caused to many problems in Malaysia. As we said there are many societies against the transgender community as it provokedto their believes in religion where some of them uses wrong ways to change the transgender people back to normal by physically and emotionally abusing them. The transgender community faces violence in different ways such aspublic violence, school violence, violence in the name of the religion and discrimination.

There are many types of violence that LGBT community faces, and one of it is discrimination. There are many laws placed to prevent or to discourage the discrimination. Establishment of the law is to protect each and every individual such as to protect them at their work place, activities and to avoid violence in race, colour, religion, national origin, ethnicity or gender of an individual. However, all these law are lack in protecting of LGBT community and this might be difficult for them to do their daily activity or to volunteer in social work as they might be fear about something could happen to them because the government does not establish any law for the LGBT community to make them feel secured and respect in the society. For example, law in violence, as state Malaysia`s Domestic violence Act, which enacted in 1994 and amended in 2011, for the unmarried relationship violence and same sex partner violence will never be covered. The domestic Violence is limited to those in familial relationship and those who marry someone from the opposite gender only. This indicates that there is no law to protect this community when their partner commits in violence towards them and this can lead to many types of crime and shows that their rights as a human being or citizen of Malaysia has been denied. We agreed in our country, Muslims strongly discourage LGBT community but as a human being, we should provide protection to this community and rights to live happily and harmony in our country as in Islam teaches us to show humanity towards other Muslim and non- Muslim.

However, we should accept the transgender community to their identity because it might causes difficulties in their life. In March 2011, Aleesha Farhana, a woman whom undergone a gender changing operation from Pahang, filed an application to change her name and gender in her identification card due to difficulties she faced in her life. But, the judge, Datuk MohdYazid Mustafa refused to accept Aleesha`s application as he was scared that by changing name would create an adverse social impact. The judge actually has good and strong reasons why he denied the application. The first reason was Malaysia does not recognised the transgender community and secondly, there will be problem occurs as we know that a person’s birth sex and we cannot accept that particular person’s new identity. For example, we cannot allow a male who changed his gender to a female to use woman’s toilet because many women will feel insecure of the appearance of transgender person as his birth sex is male but when look back to sentences above about the reason Aleesha’s request to change her identification card because she faces difficulties in her life. This shows that she has been discriminated, so the judge should give her other alternative or help her to solve her problems rather than just made a decision regarding her application without thinking about her rights as ahuman being although she is from LGBT community. In the mental discrimination, this community has been insulted or disturbed harshly often. For example, they has been treated as they are disgusting and does not have the rights to live in our country. We as a good society should not do this kind of discrimination instead we should be more understanding about them and help them through this kind of life although we does not accept them but still as a human being we should treat them fairly as long as both of us does not do something that over the boundary. This kind of discrimination is very serious as it affects their emotion where it can lead them to do something out of control such as commits in crime or suicide.

Moreover, another violence faces by LBGT community in Malaysia is Violence on the street. The LBGT community has been humiliated and treated poorly like they does not deserves the rights to live. They also has been bullied emotionally and physically by the public for being in LBGT community although they does not cause any trouble to anyone. Malaysia has been placed in one of the highest rank as a violence country against transgender in a street because there is one of incident happened in 23rd February 2014, NishaAyubposted in facebook “Hate crime against transgender in Malaysia. It's been a shocking morning for me today, friends was sending me message about a murder of a transgender in Kuantan. I knew her personally and she was beautiful and a joyful person, didn't expect to hear such shocking news about her. We lost another soul of a transgender who has been murdered where she was shot”. Her name is Sameera Krishnan was continuously stabbed and shot, and her body was cut into pieces. Police failed to classify the case as hate crime because LBGT community does not have any rights according to the Malaysia’s Law.

The word “another” used by Nisha Ayub is to indicates there were many other cases towards this kind of people and has been hide from public. Another incident was happened in December 2010, a trans women sex worker from Penang mainland was brutally insulted by people where they threw fruit peel and bags of urine or faeces. These physical attacked can be indicates the anger or disappointment by men towards transwomen. Other than physical action, they also verbally insulted by using bad words to hurt LBGT community. For example, some strangers came near lesbian or same gender couple and said “Do you want to be fingered? It is not like you have a penis! You cannot feelanything without a penis. Do you need a man? Are there no other men in this world? You can never satisfy her the way that I can if any one of you, if you take off your pants and you have a penis, I will chop mine off”. They also used certain words such as pondan, bapok, ombote, dyke, goddamn lesbian, tomboy and pengkid and howling sound like “au”. The “au” made by people to imply the sissy behavior of transwomen also has been told “You are a man but you want to be a pondan”. A research from UKM student Farhana Jafryy shows that this community has been harmed by the Police Departmentof Human Service. All this issues makes them to feel insecure as nobody there to protect or respect them as a Malaysian citizen.

Next is violence in school. At school many students faced harassment and discrimination as well. Transgender and gender non-conforming students are particularly vulnerable to mistreatment from both students and school officials. These students does not feel secured and happy to learn in a place where they faces violence of being different than other students. They are still facing a lot of harassment or discrimination on account of their gender identity and this is a very wrong way of treating them although they are not like the others. Violence against transgender students can be including being dismiss from school, kicked out of the class, held foe detention after school, or treated differently as a result of their gender identity or expression. Other areas that impacts transgender students specifically includes the pronouns of name with the intent to harass or mock, restrictions or confrontations regarding restroom use, in the administration of gender segregated classes and extracurricular activities, and in the application of dress codes.

Furthermore this community were also treatedby the education policy which makes them feel insecure although they does not do anything which against the school’s law. For example, ‘gender confusion’ is a term or a category for homosexual people by the present policy of the Education Department of Federal territory (Kuala Lumpur), as a serious offence, with recommended penalties such as stern warning, whipping or canning, fine, suspension expulsion or being charged in court. All these has made them feel of fear to come to school and they will feel that they are abandoned by the society and without guidance and help from people, these students might become more worst in many aspect such as their personality as they can become criminal because of this violence stresses them out and can lead to suicide as they does not get any supports from the society. This is verysad as they also has the rights to develops their knowledge by going to school, this kind of violence should not do towards them as school is a place to enjoy learning and make new friends but not a place to be discriminated. Teachers should acknowledge this matter and try to understand and help the students with this confusion, maybe some of them will understand and can be cure from this kind of confusion. As a conclusion instead of violence or strict law that affects their emotion, we should try to understand their problem and help them in a good and proper way that which should not neglect their rights as children, students and most important as a human being.

The last point is violence in name of religion. Supposedly in name of religion, there is no such things as violence as all religion practises peace and humanity although when people does anything wrong, they should be advise politely and nicely but some of these people who does not show humanity shows bad attitudes and uses bad words infront of everyone to make LBGT community feel ashamed in name of religion. Authorities of Islamic religious have arrested numerous people whom are trans women stopped them at unauthorized roadblocks, question them with sexual undertones and dressing in gender nonconforming behavior in public. Nevertheless, these trans woman has been arrested so many times, and this statistic are taken out from a survey made to those trans women. There also a religious department where some people used their power and treated this community harshly and humiliated. Victoria, a transwomen from Negeri Sembilan, said she was arrested in 2011 by the Religious Department Officials, who stripped and sexually assaulted her “They were rough. One of them squeezed my breasts. I was completely humiliated. They stripped me completely naked. One of them took a police baton and poked at my genitals. Everyone was looking the men(Religious Department Officials), as well as the women. They took of my naked body”. This kind of action does not fulfil the aspect of humanity and also against the believes of the religion as it teaches us not to humiliate or does violence towards others in term to punish them.

In different case, a 47 years old Malaysian Chinese, hopes that her God, Jesus will answer her existence on earth. She claimed that as a staunch catholic she cannot practice her sexuality desire. Not only that, the church continued rejected her gender identity as transwomen and she felt insecured and self-degradation. Another case, Jess a 20 years old transwomen was arrested at a food stall for attire and posing as a women which is criminal under the Islamic law in Malaysia. Department of Judiciary Malaysia was biased on their judgment towards this community by giving heavy punishment that actually can be tolerate because they are LBGT community and were despise by people especially religious people. Religion is the most peace thing in the world because it does not teach people to do violence or harm others but there is still a group of people who does not respect the religion content and take advantage in the name of religion to harm the LGBT community.

In a nutshell, there are countless amount of cases has been reported by transgender community especially in Malaysia. Many violence and challenges faced and still facing by them such as violence in school, violence in name of religion, violence in a street and discrimination. We as a Malaysian, should not treat the LGBT community badly because Malaysia is a peaceful nation so anyone can give their opinion to government because they have their own rights and the government should take a good action. If the thing which suggested can cause to problem to people surrounding then the government has the rights to disallow their ideas and we as a good friend, or family members should advise them in a good way to make them understand. We should not abuse or use violence towards them. Do not let them feel very insulting and they cannot go forward in their life. However they chose LBGT, we have no rights to despise them.