In this open letter, signatories ask the World Health Organization to:

• Ensure that the challenges being faced by LGBTQI, MSM and people and communities of diverse SOGIESC during the COVID-19 pandemic will be given due attention, and policies, programs, and responses are inclusive and do not add to the exclusion and discrimination experienced by LGBTQI people, communities and families.
• Integrate a SOGIESC-inclusive approach in their COVID-19 related guidance documents, situation reports, briefs, strategies and response.
• Work closely with LGBTQI organizations and communities towards a more inclusive responses to the pandemic.

To stay up-to-date with APTN’s work, sign up for our biannual newsletter on our home page!

Dear Friends of APTN,

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has greatly affected the lives of trans and gender diverse communities, and the critical advocacy work that our community partners do. In the past months since the pandemic started, groups, organisations and agencies around the world have had to reimagine how to support communities most in need of financial, health and peer support, and we continue to ask ourselves how we can do better to alleviate the hardships that communities are experiencing right now.

As the COVID-19 crisis escalated, trans and gender diverse organisations and communities across Asia and the Pacific rallied to help meet the needs of the most vulnerable. In consultation with these groups, APTN began a series of projects in March 2020 to support COVID-19 response initiatives. This included the development of the APTN COVID-19 Community Support Fund which provided grants to community groups and trans human rights defenders across Asia and the Pacific.

This fund was developed after analysing findings from the rapid assessment that documented the challenges faced by trans and gender diverse people during this COVID-19 health crisis. The fund has been distributed to 21 trans-led programmes, groups, organisations and partners in 13 countries, and has been used, amongst other things, to support community members’ survival with essential supplies such as food rations or personal protective equipment (PPE), or to sustain their organisations.

In collaboration with other organisations, COVID-19 resources including the following were created:

• A COVID-19 Online Resource List put together in collaboration with Equal Asia Foundation
• A Joint Survey with UNDP Thailand to find out the impact of COVID-19 on LGBTI Communities in Thailand

COVID-19 has shifted the way trans organising is happening, and as a trans-led organisation firmly rooted to movement building, we knew that quick strategic pivoting was necessary to address the inequities and injustice our trans communities continue to experience. While we have actively taken steps to protect the well-being of our partners, staff, and the communities in which we all work, we know too that we must not be distracted and we continue to advance and advocate for the progression of trans rights in national, regional, and international spaces.

In January, alongside over 150 healthcare providers in Hanoi, Vietnam, we attended the WPATH Global Education Initiative Conference (GEI). While there, APTN developed an interactive session, engaging the local healthcare providers on their current knowledge and understanding of trans issues. The Executive Director also sat on two panels regarding mental health, ensuring that a community perspective was included.

For supporting the GEI and improving access to trans healthcare worldwide through education, WPATH also awarded APTN with a ‘Recognition of Collaboration’.

In March, two members of the team attended the Global Equality Fund Stakeholders Workshop in Johannesburg, South Africa, alongside Jonathan “Lady Gaga” Wala from Hetura NCD LGBT Group in Papua New Guinea. In their sessions, they shared about global trends in the trans movement, safety, security and well-being, challenges being faced by communities, and how these challenges are being addressed.

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In July, APTN presented 4 abstracts as part of their AIDS2020: Virtual online poster exhibition. These e-posters encompassed projects subjects like barriers to accessing HIV, gender-affirming and other healthcare services, in 11 countries around Asia and the Pacific – one of which is a trans-led and driven research on the availability, accessibility, and barriers to HIV, gender-affirming and other healthcare services for trans people.

With the addition of a Human Rights and Advocacy Officer this year, our advocacy work has been further amplified, especially in the face of COVID-19 where it is more important than ever. We supported partners in Nepal and Singapore in their engagement with the UN mechanisms by providing technical support in the drafting of reports for the Universal Periodic Review; contributed to the first ever position paper of LGBTI Stakeholder Group and highlighted the gaps in the implementation of UN Sustainable Development Goals as part of the drafting team; and made a written submission to the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women about how current penal laws address rape against transgender persons.

The Second Half of 2020

As we move into the second half of 2020, we have embarked on a number of exciting initiatives. Here is a selection of some of them.

APTN x YouthLead Collaboration  – Dignity Amidst COVID-19: Trans Youth Leading The Response

With the support of UNAIDS, the Asia Pacific Transgender Network (APTN) and Youth LEAD have worked together to increase the visibility and voices of trans and gender diverse youth leaders throughout Asia and the Pacific, through a project titled Dignity Amidst COVID-19: Trans Youth Leading The Response.

This series will run every Friday from 31 July to 8 September 2020. Read the first post in the series, about Amar from Indonesia, here.

Amplifying Trans Advocacy Fellowship

This fellowship programme will train trans and gender diverse human rights defenders to utilise the international human rights accountability mechanisms, such as UPR and treaty monitoring bodies, to amplify their existing advocacy work around trans rights at national and international levels.

This fellowship will be held online between 15 September – 20 October 2020. Applications for the Fellowship are now closed.

Public Campaigning for Advocacy and Social Change

A series of online workshops were launched enhance the skills of trans and gender diverse people for public campaigning for advocacy, titled #SkillsForChange: Public Campaigning For Advocacy & Social Change.

These workshops, held every Friday starting 31 July 2020, were conducted in collaboration with queer advocates and campaigners from across Asia and the Pacific, including Alok Vaid-Menon, Indu Harikumar, Jac sm Kee, Phylesha Brown-Acton, Point Of View, The Queer Muslim Project, Shh…Diam!, Smita, and Vincy Chan.

Read more about these workshops at bit.ly/aptn-public-campaign.

APTN has initiated an organisational assessment and development process with 22 trans-led and trans-inclusive partner groups and organisations in the movement, This process started in Jan and is expected to conclude in Sep 2020. 

Through the Organisational Capacity Assessment Tool (OCAT), which is an inward-looking reflective tool for groups to facilitate a self-assessment on their capacity and identify areas where they may want to focus on strengthening. The tool is based on review of regional and global tools and best practices, and based on APTN’s ‘Finding Our Voice, Finding Our Place’ report, where most groups wanted organisational sustainability such as funding and strong organising and mobilisation.

The regional organisational assessment and capacity development report will serve as a baseline for the continuing organisational development support for partner groups, as enshrined in one of APTN’s pillars of work.

On September 18th, APTN will co-moderate a webinar on Transgender Health and HIV in Asia alongside Tangerine Community Health Clinic by Institute of HIV Research and Innovation (IHRI). This webinar features advocates, doctors, and other experts from organisations around the region and beyond, such as LoveYourself in the Philippines and Blue Diamond Society in Nepal, and will provide updates on transgender health and HIV and aims to shape the agenda for collaboration on these issues as we move into the future.

Sign up to attend at this link. 

APTN will host a webinar on Transgender Health and COVID-19 along with the Australasian Society for HIV, Viral Hepatitis and Sexual Health Medicine (ASHM). The webinar will share examples from medical and community experts on the state of health practices, policies and laws that deprive or enable trans people in accessing sexual and reproductive health and rights, gender affirming care, general healthcare, and to live authentically as themselves in times of COVID-19. 

In light of these barriers to the trans community’s health and well-being, we will hear how communities and health services are still working to improve the healthcare landscape during COVID-19 times.

In these times, it is more important than ever to stand in solidarity with those most vulnerable, including transgender persons, and prioritise the healthcare and social protection of these communities.

Learn how else you can show your support by following us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter and stay up-to-date with the latest happenings.

The COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented human crisis that is claiming lives, destroying livelihoods and disrupting economies across the world. With the support of UNAIDS, the Asia Pacific Transgender Network (APTN) and Youth LEAD have worked together to increase the visibility and voices of trans and gender diverse youth leaders throughout Asia and the Pacific.

This is the fourth in a series of six feature stories about trans youth leaders and the strength they show amidst the challenges of COVID-19. Read the other posts in the series here: APTN x YouthLEAD’s Dignity Amidst COVID-19: Stories of Trans Youth Leaders

ร่วมด้วยช่วยกันปกป้องและดูแลเอาใจใส่พี่น้องหญิงข้ามเพศในเมืองพัทยา

 Let’s help protect and care for our transgender sisters in Pattaya

I am Rawitcha Sukdipreechakul, but most people call me Garfield. I am a 25-year-old transgender woman, and, for the last three years, I have been working at Sisters Foundation in Pattaya, Thailand. I would consider myself a funny and easy-going person who likes spending time with friends. I live my life aiming to bring out the bright side of difficult situations. I grew up in a small town in northern Thailand and graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Health Science from Mae Fah Luang University in Thailand and then moved to Pattaya for work.

When I first moved to Pattaya, I wasn’t very confident. I was worried about my ability to contribute to this work and the community. At that time, I only considered myself a health worker. But since I started to work for Sisters Foundation, I developed my passion for protecting the trans community. Sisters Foundation is a non-profit organisation that provides health, education and support services to transgender people for the past 13 years. Our main work focuses on trying to increase HIV testing among transgender people and creating awareness on human rights and health services. Working for the Sisters Foundation has been a very empowering experience; the organisation has welcomed and supported me during my transition. Sisters Foundation has encouraged me and others not to be afraid of who we are by providing us with powerful information and skills to protect our rights and have a voice in society. To me, having the opportunity of being a health worker in this organisation has inspired me to find ways to protect the health of the LGBTQ+ community, as well as create awareness on the importance of regular testing.  

As a health provider, I work to ensure our clients feel accepted and comfortable, but also to provide them with relevant information about health and well-being.  My priority as a young trans activist is to make sure trans people have access to non-discriminatory health services such as  HIV  and STI testing, condoms,  psychological and informative support. Some of our clients are still afraid of taking an HIV or STI test, so my work as a health worker is to provide them with a safe space and the necessary information for them to understand what HIV and STIs are, and ways to protect themselves. We also let them know that they have the support from the community, whilst ensuring they have access to reliable information and services.

In my experience, I have realised that most of our clients are not aware of what HIV is and the importance of getting tested. As a health worker, I look for innovative ways to encourage testing. I believe that creativity plays a key role in this, such as finding ways to incentivise people to get tested so that we can provide them with the necessary support. As a trans woman, I understand the importance that beauty and femininity play in our community; the idea of authentically living as a woman is often related to feelings of acceptance and belonging. This is why we decided to develop a  creative campaign; providing them with information related to HIV and STIs through the distribution of beauty products such as lipsticks, mascaras, face creams and hormones. This strategy has increased the interest of trans people, particularly with trans women, to get tested and access some of our services.

Young transgender activists leading the COVID-19 pandemic

During the last few months and due to the outbreak of COVID-19, Pattaya has been heavily impacted by the decline of tourism and economic activity. The Thai government has implemented the ban on alcohol, closure of bars and nightlife activities. These lockdown measures have significantly affected not only businesses but areas of income for the trans community. Since Pattaya is heavily reliant on tourism, and most transgender women work in the entertainment or sex industry, the COVID-19 pandemic has had devastating consequences on trans people’s lives. As a consequence, the majority of trans people in Pattaya had no other option but to go back to their families or stay in Pattaya through the help and support from their friends and families. 

As a response, Sisters Foundation has provided free psychological support through our hotline to support trans people that  have to go back to their families, suffering from discrimination or being forced to give up on their gender identity.

In collaboration with the Global Fund, the Thai government and the Banglamung Hospital, we have been able to provide free COVID-19 testing for the LGBT community. Additionally, together with the Ministry of Social Development, we have reached the trans community in Chonburi through home visits providing health check-ups: HIV, syphilis, free consultations on STIs, free condoms and lubricants, food and economic support for travel expenses and housing. With the COVID-19 Funding provided by APTN, UNDP, Banpu and AHF Thailand, we have also been able to support trans people that are going through difficult economic situations.  

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We have also been very active on our online platforms and social media, trying to reach trans people and letting them know about our existing services and support. For the future, we are thinking about contributing to their transition and provide them with some hormonal treatment, accordingly. 

For all trans women that are in Thailand, don’t forget that you have a  community of sisters to support and protect you.

Read the other posts in the series here: APTN x YouthLEAD’s Dignity Amidst COVID-19: Stories of Trans Youth Leaders

For those most vulnerable to HIV – including people living with HIV, gay men and other men who have sex with men, transgender people, sex workers, people who use drugs, young people, migrants and prisoners – already facing challenges and disenfranchisement from the wider community, the hardships they face in employment, accessing healthcare, household settings, livelihood and social protections have only been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. At the same time, civil society and key population (KP) networks report alarming instances of human rights violations and growing concerns about the rise in discrimination targeting vulnerable groups and health care professionals.

In light of this rise of discrimination in Asia and the Pacific, UNAIDS has partnered with regional networks, including ANPUD, APCOM, APN+, APNSW, APTN, ICW AP and Youth LEAD and the IATT on YKP to develop a social media package and a set of key messages for advocacy. Drawing on the lessons learned from the HIV response, the campaign is urging people to act with kindness, not stigma and discrimination, and respect people living with HIV, key populations and people affected by COVID-19.

By joining our voices together, we can be part of a call to end all forms of discrimination. As communities, though we may be isolated in quarantine and experiencing government lockdown measures, let us not contribute to division and leave those most vulnerable behind.

We call on partners to promote inclusion, compassion, and the right of everyone to life a full and productive life – and to live it with dignity.

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The COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented human crisis that is claiming lives, destroying livelihoods and disrupting economies across the world. With the support of UNAIDS, the Asia Pacific Transgender Network (APTN) and Youth LEAD have worked together to increase the visibility and voices of trans and gender diverse youth leaders throughout Asia and the Pacific.

This is the third in a series of six feature stories about trans youth leaders and the strength they show amidst the challenges of COVID-19. Read the other posts in the series here: APTN x YouthLEAD’s Dignity Amidst COVID-19: Stories of Trans Youth Leaders

Fa´afafines: the Fatu o Aiga’ of Samoa 

Fa´afafines: the heart of the Samoan Family/Community

I find it hard to describe myself to others; some of my friends consider me as a powerful, diverse, wise, straightforward, and a genuine person. I would describe myself as a coffee lover and someone who doesn’t like to be in the spotlight. I like to act as a pillar of support for others and work to make ideas a reality. I am a Fa´afafine. I was born and raised in Samoa, and I am 25 years old. Over the past couple of years, I’ve enjoyed working in youth development, gender equality, empowering minority groups and following my passion for writing. Currently, I am working full-time at the Ministry of Health in Samoa as a Principal Officer, acting as a youth representative for the Samoa Fa’afafine Association (SFA). Meanwhile, I am also the co-founder/writer of the online non-profit project called Her Voice-based here in Samoa, a project aimed at sharing young women’s stories as a form of empowerment.

A large part of the fa’afafine cultural identity stems from Samoa’s strong emphasis on community. A Fa’afafine is considered someone who is of  Samoan descent and was assigned male at birth but whose gender identity is female. A Fa’atama is someone who is of Samoan origin, assigned female at birth but whose gender identity is male. One significant overall explanation for both terms is how we are culturally bonded with our Fa’asamoa / or our way of life as Samoans. By playing vital roles within our community, such as caring for the elderly, cooking family meals, or helping to raise children, fa’afafine are accepted and even protected by our culture. While there is little documented evidence, fa’afafine culture is believed to have existed in Samoa before the arrival of Christian missionaries in the early 19th century. Similar communities are also found in other parts of Polynesia, including Tonga and Hawaii

As a Fa’afafine, I’ve always had an interest in representing my community and targeting the minority communities of Samoa.  However, over the years, I realised that being a young Fa’afafine is just a marvellous and fantastic thing. Throughout my experience working in youth development, I have understood the value and power that young Fa’afafine and Fa’atama can contribute to Samoa, in terms of progress and social representation in society.  For me having the chance to contribute to this cause and being a voice for Fa’afafine and Fa’atama youths of Samoa is an honour. Also, having the opportunity to be part of decision-making processes and strategic thinking at high levels is a gratifying and inspirational feeling.

Representing and working with such a unique community makes me feel proud of what I do. Over the past few years, we have developed a  strong community and collective spirit that has brought us closer.  In Samoa, we believe that  “It takes a village to raise a person“, and that forms our cultural root;  establishes order, peace and harmony, which are all derived from the pinnacles of the leadership of our village councils (or in our language, Pulega a Ali’i ma Faipule). In my opinion, we Fa´afafines are the hearts of families. We can be found everywhere from village settings to looking after the elderly, in church youth groups and choirs, and every sector including as high position holders in Government Ministries, to NGOs, to the private sector as employees and of course business owners.

I feel grateful to be a young activist and to represent my community. I acknowledge the hard work and effort that was done by our predecessors. Their efforts have not gone to waste; it paved the way for us, the younger generation to carry forward their legacy. However, this does not take away the fact that there are drawbacks and challenges for us when it comes to issues of culture and religion. As a Youth Representative, I want to let young people know that the smallest things matter. Throughout my life, I have learned that little things can change other people’s lives. The fact that I can be a part of the dialogue around the improvement and betterment of young Fa’afafine and Fa’atama is something I am proud of. This achievement inspires me every day to work under the guidance of my fellow SFA colleagues to develop political mechanisms to improve other people’s lives. Apart from all of this,  I have co-created the non-profit online project called Her Voice here in Samoa to contribute to the empowerment of young women and adolescent girls in the form of Arts such as photography, fashion, makeup, blogging and videography. Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, I have been focusing my efforts in supporting the Ministry Health of Samoa, to find responses to prevent the appearance of COVID- 19 in the country. 

Young Fa´afafine activist leading the COVID-19 pandemic

In contrast to many other countries, Samoa has no confirmed COVID-19 cases. The government has taken preventive measurements, such as the restriction of international travel and the limiting of public transport, which has created challenges both socially and economically. Private businesses are struggling; our country is heavily reliant on the tourism industry, and as you can imagine, this has been significantly affected. However, it is worth noting that efforts in combating the COVID-19 pandemic are ongoing not only at the community level but also at the national, regional and international level through multisectoral approaches and dialogue.

In my perspective, the COVID-19 pandemic is ‘a workload of experiences’. Since I work for the Ministry of Health, the moment the COVID-19 was being announced as a global pandemic by WHO; our government began working day and night to make sure our country is secured and safe from the deadly virus. It is indeed unusual, but at the same time, a big challenge for me to learn and further develop my skills. It is an honour to live and experience such opportunities and events and contribute to protecting and representing my community during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

I have had the opportunity to be part of the pandemic response team at the Ministry of Health. I aided and assisted the coordination/logistics for quarantine sites, supported the rotation in operating our 24/7 call centre,  and assisted as a front liner at Port Health. As a public servant for Samoa, we are obligated to work and serve our country. My support for my community is channelled through my work as a health worker. I believe that the COVID-19 pandemic is a wake-up call concerning climate change, mass production, and especially to personal health and our lifestyles and habits. The COVID-19 pandemic, to this extent, is also a wake-up call for our Ministry of Health to provide people with more sustainable, conscious and healthier choices. 

Though Samoa remains coronavirus-free, our government is still very conscious of the impact on our country, and many of our annual activities have been put on hold for our safety. SFA has, however, been able to continue delivering its services through alternative methods, such as increasing our social media outreach and conducting workshops alongside the government to provide a better understanding of this COVID-19 pandemic.

Read the other posts in the series here: APTN x YouthLEAD’s Dignity Amidst COVID-19: Stories of Trans Youth Leaders

The COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented human crisis that is claiming lives, destroying livelihoods and disrupting economies across the world. With the support of UNAIDS, the Asia Pacific Transgender Network (APTN) and Youth LEAD have worked together to increase the visibility and voices of trans and gender diverse youth leaders throughout Asia and the Pacific. This is the second in a series of six feature stories about trans youth leaders and the strength they show amidst the challenges of COVID-19.

Read the other posts in the series here: APTN x YouthLEAD’s Dignity Amidst COVID-19: Stories of Trans Youth Leaders

What It Means to be Intersex in India

I am Dit Mangang, I am intersex and self-identify as a transgender person. I am from Manipur, a state located in the most northeastern part of India. I recently graduated from Manipur Institute of Technology, and now volunteer for YA ALL; an organization that works mostly on the health and well-being of adolescents, youths, and the LGBTIQ community. I started working as an advocate when I was seventeen, and since then, I’ve been advocating for intersex people and their rights to education.

I’ve always considered myself an introvert. Growing up, I had an identity crisis, and I also suffered from depression. I was born intersex, but as no one was aware of the term, and no one could advocate for me, I struggled at the beginning to know who I was. For many years I was doing what society was expecting from me,  pretending to be a girl, something that didn’t fit my identity. When I found out about the term intersex, I finally felt like something was representing me. This experience has changed my life; I was able to show and explain to people who I was. 

I learned about the term intersex through someone else’s story. Since then, I feel passionate about other people’s success stories and motivational videos.  Nowadays, I like to share my story to encourage Intersex people to enjoy their lives and never give up on their studies. As an activist, I also think that sharing my story will create awareness about the existence of Intersex people. I believe that not only in India but all over the world, there is a lack of understanding or knowledge of Intersex people. The LGBTIQ discourse focuses mainly on transgender people, but very often, intersex people are left out. In India, for example, I am only aware of a few intersex activists. In the northeastern part of India, awareness or knowledge on intersex people is still very low, even among LGBTIQ communities, which further adds to the rejection and discrimination of intersex people. That’s why I focus my efforts on awareness and to promote a better understanding of intersex people.

My goal is to be not only an activist, but a public speaker, and I want to set an example for others by sharing my own story. Despite facing discrimination from educational institutions and society, I have never given up on my educational goals, and I always felt passionate about my career.  I want to encourage and inspire others to continue their studies regardless of the discrimination that they are facing. At the same time, I want to create awareness in society regarding the inclusion and social acceptance of intersex people in the educational system and institutions. Education is a powerful tool to transform and influence societies, throughout education we can influence our communities and build safer environments for trans people. I wish the coming generation of intersex people will never face the same discrimination that I have gone through during my childhood.

Young transgender activists leading the COVID-19 pandemic

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, our community has been significantly impacted.  For trans women, most of them are financially independent of their families. They have their own business or jobs, but because of the lockdown, they have not been able to run their businesses as usual. For trans men, they have lost their jobs and are most of the time-dependent on their families. The majority of trans people in India have lost their jobs and are unable to pay for their accommodations or daily expenses. 

Trans people are also facing difficulties accessing their hormone treatments. The majority of trans people have to travel to the main cities to get their medications, but lockdowns and travel restrictions due to COVID-19, hinder them from going. As a response, the central government has implemented some resources to assist transgender people during the pandemic, by providing them with  around 40 USD per month. However, in my region, only a tiny percentage of trans people have been able to access this financial support scheme set up by the government. Nevertheless, the pandemic has also had some positive impact on our trans community. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, we used to have limited participants in our events, due to daily obligations and personal matters. But, since the COVID-19 pandemic began, and people started to have more free time, we have witnessed increasing participation in our online events and activities. 

Through the support of Youth LEAD and the  YKP COVID-19 Emergency Relief Fund, a grant scheme to support young key populations and young people living with HIV in the time of COVID-19; Ya_All was able to set up an initiative to distribute  first aid kits with sanitary pads and condoms to middle-class and low-income families across the state. In total, we managed to reach approximately 500 families. We also received support from the state government with transportation to enable us to distribute medical kits to families. Ya All has placed efforts in providing mental health support, through a hotline service allowing young people to talk to mental health professionals on issues such as anxiety, stress and depression. We have also been providing some financial assistance to trans people who are facing challenges with rent payments as well as daily expenses. 

For all youngsters who are facing difficulties, do not be afraid to reach out to your friends or reach out to any of the free mental support initiatives in your country to overcome the challenges in your life. Try to focus your energy and time in learning new things, work on new projects, enjoy your hobbies and spend time with your family and friends. 

 Read the other posts in the series here: APTN x YouthLEAD’s Dignity Amidst COVID-19: Stories of Trans Youth Leaders