INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
KATHMANDU, DECEMBER 10People and supporters of LGBTIQ+ community today joined a march from Maitighar to celebrate the
3rd annual transgender pride parade.
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The pride parade is organised with the message of 'Pride in identity
and breaking the social stigma against LGBTIQ+ community'
The rally is celebrated in Nepal on the second Saturday of June
Participants in today's parade displayed their transgender pride flag that symbolise pride, diversity and rights
The month of June is celebrated as the pride month around the world.
However, unlike other generic pride parade, this
parade will be specifically celebrated for transgender people.It is said that the issues of transgender people are often overshadowed within
the larger umbrella of LG- BTQ+ community.The organiser of today's parade said the celebration was held to highlight themes, issues and
cases of transgender people.When the LGBTIQ+ community started getting recognition in the beginning, there was not even a word in the Nepali
language for the word 'transgender', as per the organisers
Instead, the authorities identified them as third gender which grossly misrepresented their identity as transgender men or transgender
women."The word tesro lingi (third gender) was used to denote transgender people in the Khas/Parbate language.That is how the wrong concept
of 'transgender means third gender' was established.This word could not clarify the gender identity of transgender men as men and the gender
identity of transgender women as women," reads the press release by QYG.It was the QYG, which on 17 December 2018 coined Nepali term
'pāralaingik' as a literal meaning of transgender."This lexical establishment has paved the way to advocate that transgender women are
women and transgender men are men."Commemorating this historic day of December 17, it was decided that the Transgender Pride Parade would be
organised on the same date if it was a Saturday, or the Saturday that followed the date
However, since it was deemed difficult to remember this custom, from this year onwards, the QYG has decided to celebrate Transgender Pride
Parade on the second Saturday of December, thereby marking the second Saturday of December as Transgender Pride Day
QYG is a non-profit organisation which advocates the rights of marginalised sexual orientation, gender identity and sexual
characteristics.Trans Rights Collective, a loose network of trans folks advocating rights and betterment of transgender people, is also
working in tandem with it.A version of this article appears in the print on December 11, 2022, of The Himalayan Times.
This article first appeared/also appeared in https://thehimalayantimes.com