Daily Times

Rawalpindi Police has made history by recruiting the first transgender woman as a police officer, officials confirmed.

According to details, Reem Sharif is a prominent transgender rights activist in Islamabad and will now join the police department.

In this regard, Reem Sharif said, “I am delighted to be in this position. Through this, I will have the option to deal with some of the most pressing issues faced by my transgender community.”

“I knew I needed to live my life and be true to who I was. I need to be honest with myself, and that was coming out as a transgender woman,” Reem Sharif added.

After years of sometimes brutal persecution, transgender people in Pakistan gained recognition in 2009 when the Supreme Court granted them special status with rights equal to other citizens.

While discrimination still persists, the move to allow transgender police recruits would be a significant step for the community, activists say.

Earlier, Syed Kaleem Imam, Inspector General of the Sindh revealed that rtansgender people in Sindh will be able to serve as regular duty police officers, adding that it was time to offer more opportunities to a group relegated to menial jobs in government.

As in India and Bangladesh, transgender people in the country have faced widespread discrimination for decades. Many live in secluded communities, earning a living as dancers or forced into sex work or begging.

A 2017 census counted 10,418 transgender people in the country of 207 million, but rights group Charity Trans Action Pakistan estimates there are at least 500,000.