Pakistan’s First Transgender Anchor Made Her Debut On Live TV

By Karissa Lund  •  28 Mar 2018 in News

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Pakistan’s Marvia Malik created a path-breaking history as the first transgender newscaster in Pakistan. Her first appearance was aired on Saturday (last week) by the local channel ‘Kohinoor’ that has recruited her as the newscaster.

According to BBC News, she was in tears after the job offer and went straight into three months of training before her on air debut. Marvia is a journalism graduate and model who started her career as the first ever transgender model to walk the ramp at the prestigious ‘Pakistan Fashion Design Council’ (PDFC).

Now a newscaster, Marvia continues to speak on gender issues:

“Our community should be treated equally and there must not be any gender discrimination. We should be given equal rights and be considered ordinary citizens, instead of third-gender.”

She added, “My family knows I have modeled and they know that I work as a newscaster. It’s the age of social media and there’s nothing that my family doesn’t know. But they have still disowned me.”

Marvia added in a report by The Logical Indian that gender should not be the parameter to identify someone. Instead, talent and skills should set a person apart, regardless of their gender identity.

“Identity should be classified talent wise not gender-wise,” she said. Marvia is passionate about bringing change in the society.

Meanwhile in Malaysia, transgenders are still treated with violence and bias. With laws passed to curtail their freedom, fatwa issued against them, little chance of reassignment surgery and no legal access to hormones, transgenders in Malaysia rely on support groups and the Internet for help and guidance.

When will human rights in Malaysia show progress? Let us know in the comment section below!