FAFEN appointed 25 transgender as electoral observers in Pakistan
'The Free and Fair Election Network' (FAFEN) in Pakistan has appointed around 25 transgender people on Wednesday. They will be among 75 people that are appointed as election observers to monitor polls for Pakistan’s July 25 General Election for the first time. It is an attempt to make Pakistan’s electoral process more inclusive and participatory for some of the vulnerable sections of society. They were appointed at a training programme organised by FAFEN in collaboration with the Gender Interactive Alliance (GIA). It was a move to promote human rights and active electoral participation of some of the vulnerable groups of society which include persons with disabilities, transgender persons and women. Project manager, Zahid Abdullah, said, “FAFEN has nearly 19,000 members who will monitor the elections. Out of these 19,000 members, we have trained around 125 persons selected from across Pakistan to monitor and enhance the capacity of citizens belonging to vulnerable groups.” As election observers, the transgender persons are to observe and note down any violation of rights or act of discrimination against the vulnerable sections of society at polling stations in the upcoming general elections on July 25. Any direct violations and observations would immediately be conveyed to presiding officers while survey forms would be filled by the electoral observers to report incidence of political and electoral violence. The form will then be submitted to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) at day end. -PTC News
