Two Pakistanis Jailed for Attempted Gay Marriage

Pakistan is an Islamic country. In all religions transsexuality is considered deviant behaviour. It is categorically rejected by all religious Jews, Christians and Muslims. Only Iran allows sex-changes and considers it possible to alter your birth sex. In Pakistan there has been a community of khusras/hijras since time in memorial. This is where men who like to dress up as women and transgendered people live. They are often prostitutes whose clientelle consist of men who have no problem with having sex out of wedlock, with someone born male, and anal sex. All 3 of these categories are rejected by Islam as major sins. God chooses a person's sex: male, female or intersexed. "Transsexuality" is nothing more than a mental order which needs to be treated so the person can accept and be proud of their birth gender. It is a crippling condition but can be cured by those truly willing to be as God intended.

I just wanted to continue with my earlier point. I am not a homophobe, biphobe or any other kind of bigot. I find discrimination of all kinds disgraceful. I am an open minded and peaceful man, I don't like war or violence. I don't want people looking at my other comment and calling me a bigot. I don't care what orientation someone is, I don't care what skin colour they have. I see people for who they are on the inside and accept them as that.

And this is why I feel ashamed to be apart of this community. Ok I am a trans man, I was born female but my gender identity is MALE, man. I am also attracted to both men and women. This has nothing to do with me wanting to conform to heteronormative society, its about me becoming myself and accepting myself for who I am. The community should be LGBT, NOT LGB T. This seperation is ridiculous and its mostly due to the hypocrisy of this community. The LGB community say that its wrong for heterosexual society to judge them but then they turn round, find another under represented minority and proceed to tell them that they don't exist and should accept their "gay" identity. For the record, I am 19 years old and have been part of this community for 2 years. I have known I was trans for two years, and before all you bigots tell me im too young to know. Think how old you were when you knew what gender you was in your head. 2 years in this community im about ready to quit. I've had enough

Dear Advocate: According to Rani and Mr Iqbal, they are not a "gay" couple. How fucking hard is it to take them at their word? Regarding the imposition of western identities onto this couple: Maybe we can't authoritatively claim Rani as a trans woman due to their living in a different culture from us, but by the same token, we sure as hell can't call this couple "gay", either.

Once again The Advocate Gayjacks a Trans story about a woman being misgendered and punished for being true to herself and falsely turns it into another story about Gay Marriage to throw us to the wolves as gay martyrs for THEIR purposes while treating us even worse than those who attack us. The Advocate? Not of trans people. If you're a woman with a penis you're just a gay man in denial baby! Deal with it and stop bitching when we throw you under a bus for the cause! After all, if they can get marriage equality on our backs, MAYBE in 2 or 3 decades they MIGHT remember to return the favor and fight to keep us in ENDA, which will probably STILL be being debated in the senate by then. A trans woman with a boyfriend does NOT a gay couple make you assholes. Just further proof that gay men just assume trans women are all self-loathing gay men in denial. Fuck you Advocate. You're no Advocate of mine.

To "Harrold" and all the other vociferous bigots on here. Rani lives as a woman so clearly claims a transgender identity. Transgender people are as varied in their sexual orientation as anybody else. We don't need to change anything to play at being straight. I'm a transman and bisexual. Deal with it.

As far as the trans = homophobia rubbish - it is easily disproved without any tras person disclosing their one sexual orientation. If trans folks were so devastated by being gay that we go through the emotional, physical, and financial struggles to transition so we can "conform" and be str8, why are there so many trans people openly and vocally visibly advocating for GLB rights? If internalized homophobia was the cause, why stick around and be associated with something one worked so are to get away from? Logic people, simple and basic - it's free and easy to use.

It's pretty obvious that Harrold/ Diane are relying on the bias of the editors, writers, and readers to back up their plain attempts to bait trans people (rather specifically women) into one of two (justified) reactions. 1) Plead, beg, and nicely ask for further inclusion with the GLB. If the water works get turned on, so much the better - it proves that trans women are everso emotional 2) Rant rage and fight - further the already strained relationship that this article perpetuates - proves trans women are everso angry and mean.

Diane, you are yet another miserable bigot sorely uneducated on the subject of sex and gender. I have a mixture of pity and contempt for people who have learned so well to internalize the hatred that the status quo has for them that they in turn oppress others w/ thoughtless comments.

Harold, you are sorely uneducated concerning gender and sex and making some pretty illogical statements because of it. Are you aware that you are a victim of the same sort of fallacies in thought that have lead straight society to insist that gay men are "broken straight men" in need of fixing? This is very clearly NOT a gay couple. That the Advocate is a "gay" publication does not give them the right to appropriate the identity of a Trans woman (or anyone else for that matter) and HER partner, regardless of agenda. It seems you are forgetting that as a community, ahem, LGBT there is much gender and sexual diversity, and that in the struggle for equal rights "silly drag queens" (I suppose in your foolishness you would call me a "silly woman in pants" or some other such nonsense) have stood beside gay men and women in this struggle. I suppose that is fine w/ you right? While I am asking questions, what in the hell is a "real man" or a "real woman" anyways?