By Minahil Makhdoom
ISLAMABAD: Ministry of Human Rights ( MoHR) has started social inclusion of vulnerable transgenders in the social protection and health caring settings and social security safety nets in the times of COVID-19 pandemic in the country.
According to an official, the transgender persons continue to experience discrimination from service providers and staff across the social protection that leave them poorer and more vulnerable in the face of COVID-19 pandemic.
He said the main aim of the said program was to provide safety to the most vulnerable transgender persons living in twin cities. He said the initiative is the first outcome of the Ministry of Human Rights (MoHR) and UNDP Human Rights Taskforce on COVID-19 for collaboration on efforts through a human rights lens.
He said that geographical areas of Islamabad and Rawalpindi were a part of the assessment while the assessment itself was disaggregated along multiple categories including, age, disability if any, health status, pre-COVID19 employment/income generation capacity, residence, and any experience of Gender Based Violence (GBV)). He also said that the Ministry of Human Rights (MoHR) was on board to ensure ownership from the government. He said that there was dire need of the particular vulnerabilities of the trans-people, including older persons, those living with disabilities, compromised immune systems and the homeless.
