Nepal stalls on LGBT rights despite early strides

Kathmandu: Nepal was hailed a leader in LGBT rights when it became the first country in conservative South Asia to recognise a third gender and assure equality for its sexual minorities.

But more than a decade later, that trailblazing reputation has lost its lustre, with gay and transgender Nepalis still confronting obstacles to jobs and schools, and marriage equality a distant prospect.

More than 900,000 of Nepal’s roughly 26 million population identify as a sexual minority, according to LGBT rights group Blue Diamond Society.

On paper, they enjoy some of the most progressive protections and rights guaranteed by law in the immediate region.

Landmark reforms in 2007 prohibited discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and recognised gay Nepalis at a time when homosexuality was still illegal in neighbouring India.

Transgender Nepalis identifying as neither male nor female were also granted the right to tick “other” when voting or applying for a passport or other official documents.

But gay and transgender Nepalis and rights activists say action has not matched rhetoric, and more than a decade on, the community still faces discrimination.

“The government recognised our identity but has not been able to put forward a concrete policy or plan to give us rights that all citizens enjoy,” said Blue Diamond Society president Pinky Gurung.

“It is heartbreaking that to enjoy one right (citizenship), we have to be deprived of other opportunities.”

Rukshana Kapali, a transgender woman, has been allowed to study at university but not formally register as a student because her high school transcript identifies her as male under a former name.

The bureaucratic glitch means she may not be able to graduate.

“I feel like I am in limbo,” said the 19-year-old.

“I want to be a linguist, but right now I am worried I won’t be able to study here at all.”

Tribhuvan University, Nepal’s oldest, says it hopes to find a solution but until then, Kapali is off the books.

“We are optimistic, but it is not possible to register her under the current regulations,” said Pushpa Raj Joshi, the university’s exam controller.

— AFP Bureaucratic glitch: Kapali showing her school-leaving certificates, one of which showed a photo of her as a boy (left), at her home in Patan near Kathmandu.