Pakistan’s Supreme Court has directed authorities to issue Computerised National Identity Cards (CNICs) to eunuchs and register them as “she-males”.
“The court has directed the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) to expedite the issuance of CNICs to eunuchs,” said a court official.
A three-member bench headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry and comprising Justices Sair Ali and Ghulam Rabbani heard the case about gender identification of eunuchs. During the proceedings, the CJP remarked that eunuchs were Pakistani citizens and were deprived of their rights because they did not have identity cards. He ordered all provincial governments to protect the fundamental rights of eunuchs and also take steps to give them inheritance rights.
Nadra in December 2010 had agreed to add a third option in ID card forms. It had said that the CNIC application forms would contain the third option along with “male” and “female”.
A Nadra representative informed the court that an ordinance would soon be promulgated for registration and declaration of eunuchs as “she-males”.
President of the She-male Association of Pakistan, Almas Bobby, expressed gratitude to the court for granting the community their rights.