Q & A: Self-respect, Self-acceptance are Key for Transgenders

Yuni Shara

Yuni Shara of Yogyakarta, Indonesia has been in transgender advocacy work for 10 years. Before setting up her own NGO with five friends in 2006, she was a volunteer for a transgender community support group under Perkumpulan Keluarga Berencanna Indonesia (Indonesian Planned Parenthood Association). Today, Kebaya works for the welfare of transgenders in that Indonesian city. Shara talks to TerraViva about the challenges she and other transgender face, and her motivation to fight for her rights. TerraViva: How did you get involved in the transgender advocacy work?

Shara: I used to be a sex worker. After attending an outreach programme for sex workers, I got more interested and wanted to learn more in order to contribute something back to the community. Soon after that, I joined the Planned Parenthood Association of Indonesia as a volunteer teaching about reproductive health.

TerraViva: Tell us more about Kebaya.

Shara: Kebaya aims to involve transgenders in a variety of activities, including interaction within and outside the community. We are engaged in information dissemination, advocacy, outreach and assistance to marginalised transgenders, as well as networking with the government. Through Kebaya, we also were able to send transgenders to a boarding school where they are taught how to read the Koran and recite prayers, take part in religious talks about important issues, to name a few. We’d like to make Kebaya a conducive place for transgenders where their rights are recognised and their individuality affirmed.

TerraViva: What was the response like from the local community when your launched Kebaya?

Shara: We got very positive feedback. Not only did we receive invitations to take part in community activities and festivals — we also were able to link with the academe and conduct discussions with students about transgenders.

TerraViva: How difficult is it to try to introduce changes within the transgender community and outside?

Shara: One of the most difficult parts is to deal with the internal struggles in our community. Self-respect and self-acceptance are two very important things for a transgender to develop if he or she wants to be respected and accepted by others.

I have a friend who likes to dress flamboyantly and is always being teased by people. She got mad and became defensive. So we discussed it and I told her that if she doesn’t want to be teased, then she could stop wearing flashy clothes so as not to attract attention, and that if she doesn’t want to do that, then just ignore the teasing. It’s all a matter of accepting oneself first; everything else will follow.

TerraViva: What is the biggest challenge right now for transgenders?

Shara: The biggest challenge I think is for the transgendered to be recognised as different from both men and women and have it reflected in, say, the Indonesian identity card. The card gives one access to many services. It’s to be able to use the card without one being grouped either into male or female. If this happens, then it would signify society’s acknowledgment and acceptance of transgenders.

TerraViva: There are still so many who are confused and do not know about transgenders. How do you dispel these misconceptions?

Shara: It’s highly complex, trying to explain what a transgender is all about. For instance, some Indonesian transgenders find transsexual operations not useful because although they will look like women, they still won’t be able to bear children but in terms of identity, she’d rather be called a woman. In general, a transgender is called ‘wariya’, or a transgender who has the option to have a sex change operation or not. (END/IPSAP/TV/LLC/JS/09)