CARNAL NATION

An entire subculture of 'eunuchs' exists at the margins of Pakistani communities. Here, the term 'eunuch' refers collectively to the transgendered, the transsexual, and the intersexed or hermaphrodites (those born with both male and female sex organs). CNN reports that members of this marginalized community are beginning to become more visible and to demand their rights.

Most of the denizens of these eunuch colonies are shunned by their families and eke out a meager existence by begging or prostitution. Their world is dark and dangerous. For example, Shazia, who left home in her early teens, endures the stares and taunts of people on the streets all day long. She is still reeling from an incident when she was 17 during which she was drugged and had her penis cut off by the head 'eunuch' of her colony. "I get so confused. I feel very strange that Allah could have made me a boy, or he could have made me a girl, but this way, neither boy nor girl. This life is very strange. It is a bad life," Shazia said. "I do not want to accept this life. Had it been legal to commit suicide I would have done it." Watch a video (SFW) of Shazia going about her daily life after the jump.

However, all of this adversity has also brought out a certain courage in Shazia, who has founded an advocacy group and is actively campaigning for rights. A human rights lawyer, Muhammad Aslan Khaki, has also joined her cause. Khaki recently presented a petition to the Pakistani Supreme Court demanding that the government officially recognize the transgendered and the intersexed. Shazia and Khaki's efforts have led to the first official register of 'eunuchs' in Pakistan. In addition, the Supreme Court has also ordered that the various government departments must research and implement ways to fully integrate these marginalized people into society.