Transgender ‘Aleesha’ dies of heart attack, depression

Ashraf is seen covering his face with a bag as he leaves the Terengganu High Court, July 18, 2011. — file pic

KUALA LUMPUR, July 30 — Mohd Ashraf Hafiz Abdul Aziz, who underwent a sex change operation two years ago, has died from a heart attack this morning, less than two weeks after a court rejected his application to adopt a female name.

Mohd Ashraf, who wanted to be known as Aleesha Farhana Abdul Aziz, passed away at 5am at the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the Sultanah Nur Zahirah Hospital in Kuala Terengganu.

He was admitted yesterday evening after experiencing heart problems and low-blood pressure. Doctors confirmed yesterday that Mohd Ashraf suffered a heart attack from an “unstable angine with cardiogenic shock.”

His father, Abdul Aziz Ahmad, 60, was quoted by Bernama Online as saying Mohd Ashraf’s body will be buried after Zohor prayers this afternoon.

Abdul Aziz added that he will wait for the other family members to decide on whether the funeral will be held.

According to the father, Mohd Ashraf suffered from severe depression after his court application to change his name was rejected.

On July 18, Terengganu High Court Judge Datuk Mohd Yazid Mustafa said that the application by Ashraf , 25, was rejected because of his chromosomes, the presence of male genitals when the applicant was born, and the presence of male internal organs.

Ashraf, who filed the application in court on May 25, underwent the operation in Thailand in 2009 after passing a psychological assessment in the Pantai Medical Centre.

He said the name change would allow him to be accepted into a local university and ease the difficulty of living as a woman.