Building bridges, surviving the pandemic and emerging stronger

File photo

The LGBTIQ+ community suffered disproportionately during the pandemic as COVID-19 only entrenched inequalities and pushed individuals into poverty.

The COVID-19 pandemic overall has not been kind to the LGBTIQ+ community as it continues to entrench existing inequalities, push hard-working individuals further down the socio-economic ladder, and even take lives. The death of transman Manish Yadav, an activist and a figure of inspiration to many, rocked the Nepali LGBTIQ+ community in early June 2020. Unfortunately, Yadav’s death was followed by further losses.

The measures introduced to control the coronavirus and save lives exposed the already vulnerable LGBTIQ+ community to much financial hardship and emotional distress. Anish, a gay young man studying and working part-time in the travel sector, loved his open life in the capital. However, everything changed when he had to board a bus for his hometown in the Tarai. Anish felt suffocated by not being able to be himself. The uncertainty surrounding the lockdown and not being able to see an end in sight only challenged him further. A few months into the lockdown, Anish took a chance and boarded a bus to Thankot. He walked all the way back to Kathmandu. Whilst Anish’s story continues, many LGBTIQ+ lives came to an abrupt halt during the lockdown.

The lockdown only exacerbated social stigma and economic hardship for many vulnerable groups, including daily-wage earners, single women and sex workers, many of whom are also part of the LGBTIQ+ community. LGBTIQ+ individuals face a scale of inequalities. Murders of transwomen have grabbed headlines long before the arrival of COVID-19. Violence against transgender people is on the rise in many parts of the world, including the USA where 32 transgender and gender non-conforming people have been killed already this year. At home, transgender people are denied equal rights to citizenship and education, among many others. The pandemic has further highlighted the precarious position that many transgender and intersex people occupy as stories surfaced of transgender women struggling to receive food rations due to concerns about the legitimacy of their citizenship cards.

Critical conversations regarding citizenship and protecting the right to gender self-determination have continued in the midst of the pandemic. If lessons are to be learned then let this pandemic teach us the importance of being connected and having access to support networks. Every Nepali has a right to a citizenship that best reflects the person, their name, and chosen gender identity. Unfortunately, it is not only people belonging to the LGBTIQ+ community, but also many other vulnerable groups, that continue to be excluded from receiving what is their constitutional right.  

As we find ways to live through the pandemic, there’s an urgent need to improve access to health care for many LGBTIQ+ individuals. The earlier half of the lockdown resulted in many struggling to obtain necessary hormonal medication, HIV medication, and sexual health screening, resulting in deteriorating physical, emotional, and mental health. Furthermore, loss of income due to the closure of entertainment venues affected millions across the country and negatively impacted many within the LGBTIQ+ community. As the country’s economy slowly restarts, it risks leaving vulnerable groups behind.

An education campaign focused on internet safety and behaviour is also necessary, not just for the LGBTIQ+ community but various other cross-sections of society too. Rapid access to internet connectivity in the country has catalysed many learnings but also presented unique challenges. Cyber bullying and malicious online harassment targeting vulnerable young people and those from the queer community have increased drastically since the lockdown. A multi-pronged effort is required to improve and inform the mass about online safety.

The year, however, has also shown the great adaptability of people. As photos circulated of daily wage earners walking from mountain communities to the plains to reunite with their families, some of us sought inspiration from the hardship and sought to reflect hard on our privileges. Those of us who comfortably enjoy our broadband connectivity, food deliveries and Zoom learning need to reflect on the society that we are part of and all we have done to support others in these challenging times. Why have some struggled to adapt to the ‘new normal’ is a question that many of us in privileged positions should be seeking to answer. What can I, as a cisgender gay man, do more to support LBTIQ+ people is a question that I need to continue asking myself.

The inaction by the state during the lockdown has not only embedded existing inequalities but further disillusioned millions of people from the system that should be supporting them. The state has failed its most vulnerable groups and unfairly left the people of Nepal to support one another. Yet, it is in this support that marginalised groups are once again unlocking new networks to collaboratively champion causes and discover the interconnected nature of their fight. With this approach, we once again find strength in our activism and campaigning, and hope that we emerge from the pandemic building stronger bridges, unlocking more resources, and striving to go beyond for the most vulnerable in our communities.

Lex Limbu is a London-based Nepali digital content creator

Bhumika's message to LGBTIQ community during the lockdown period in Nepal