Trans people have joined the Boy Scouts in Pakistan for the first time

A group trans people made history in Pakistan and joined one of the country’s biggest Scouts groups.

The group of about 40 trans people took their Scouts’ oath last week in Pakistan’s biggest city, Karachi.

It was the first time any trans person has joined the Pakistan Boy Scouts Association (PBSA).

The Scout Movement supports young people in their physical, mental and spiritual development. It aims for young people to play constructive roles in society.

The Scouts have groups all over the world, including in Pakistan which boasts nearly one million members across the country.

Trans advocates praised the addition of trans members to the Scout Movement, including prominent activist Farzana Jan.

Jan, who was the first person to get a passport with their gender recorded as ‘X’, was at the induction last week.

‘We feel that we are being recognised as equal citizens of Pakistan as the level of acceptance among society at large has been increasing gradually,’ Jan told the group as reported by The News.

‘We don’t discriminate’

Senior PBSA leaders said they welcomed the new trans recruits and were happy to have them join the movement.

‘PBSA is open to all, without distinction of origin, race or creed,’ said Atif Amin Hussain, commissioner of the local IPC Sindh Boys Scouts.

The secretary of the same group, Akhter Mir, said the Scouts Association in Pakistan is not a gender specific movement. He said the Scouts’s priority was youth development.

‘Transgender people are also youth, and we don’t discriminate on the basis of gender,’ he told Arab News.

Many of the new trans recruits have been put forward to take on the prestigious role of volunteers at the annual Hajj pilgrimage.

All Muslims must do the pilgrimage to the Holy Site at Mecca in Saudi Arabia at least once. But only if they can afford to and are physically able to.

Read more from Source: Trans people have joined the Boy Scouts in Pakistan for the first time