The Special Gender - Human Rights

THE SPECIAL GENDER?

Last month, on my way back from the court, I stopped at a red signal, nothing special…. but what I encountered kind of changed my view about the special gender. Wondering what a special gender is? Well, we speak about specially abled people / differently abled people ( be it physically or mentally specially abled)…. They are known so, because what they comprehend about the world and human behaviour, none of us normally endowed people can fathom. But I rarely find people engaging in talks concerning the people belonging to the special gender or if I may call them so “specially endowed people”, may be partially because of the taboo and partially because no one would want to be associated with such people who are “not physically normal”. It’s the same now about te special gender as was the case with specially abled people in earlier years.

Getting back to my experience, I was watching a special gender person asking for money from the drivers of various vehicles waiting for the green signal, which all of us have witnessed, atleast in India, while some gave money the others turned their heads away. The person continued unabashedly, showing the lack of ego, which we the “normal” people have in abundance.

Quite suddenly, the person turned to me and asked money from me, and as is wont to be the immediate reaction I just shook my head, indicating that I do not want to give any money. The person’s reply was astounding “if you people (meaning, women/literate/working) say no to us, where will we go?”. To this day, am unable to forget the person’s words. This is the first personal encounter for me. Hence this write-up.

We speak of various fundamental rights, which includes right to education, right to life, right to livelihood, right to dignity, right to work, et al, but till date I have rarely heard of specially endowed people enjoying any of these rights – they would deem it a privilege to be able to study alongwith other students, live with dignity as any other human being would, and work with “normal” people in normal jobs…… Why is it that they have not been allowed to exercise any of these rights, though they are as much humans as any of us.

What is usually seen of the specially endowed people is that they dress up well to attract people’s attention, so that they will get money;

They are illiterates, at the most knowing how to sign their names, in case a good Samaritan teaches them how to; they are not given seat in any of the schools or colleges ( please include the RTE quotas);

They do not have decent housing facilities, as no owner or seller would encourage such people to live with the “normal” people;

They are not given any jobs in any of the numerous companies, factories, big corporations, small businesses, why, even pan shops refuse to employ people belonging to the special gender.

They beg on the streets and live among their own people, where and when they find a place to stay, so that they can sustain themselves till they die………….there is no right to dignity, there is no right to life, when it concerns such people……..

This is food for thought.

We speak about rights – be it human rights, women’s rights, child rights, rights of workers, animal rights, so on and so forth, but rarely does anyone speak of the rights of the special gender. Anyone who raises their voice, even if it is the people belonging to the special gender themselves, are condemned and retaliated.

We speak of the incarcerated people, of patients with terminal illnesses, of animals who are thrown out of their territory, who undergo unspeakable trauma, let us include in this list even the specially endowed people, and try to treat them in the same manner as the specially abled/differently abled people.

Wish this New Year, which is filled with wishes for harmony, peace, happiness for the people world over, includes the people belonging to the special gender as one of us….. human beings. 

I request the seniors, influential people and good samaritans in this lawyerclub and elsewhere to please raise the issue, if possible, before the appropriate authorities. Thank you.