Rao, 28, has risen through poverty to pave a path directly to Pakistan’s courts scene with incredible determination. LGBTQ+ rights in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan are still a contentious issue, but some progress was reached in 2009 as the Supreme Court ruled in favour of transgender individuals being able to state their third gender on their national identity cards.
More recently, we have seen gradual societal and political progress. Pakistan’s parliament passed a law in 2018 recognising transgender people as equal citizens and protecting them from discrimination and violence.
The Transgender Person (Protections of Rights) Act will ensure that trans people will have their gender recognised on official government documents.