Justice For Sisters chides police, media over reporting of death of transwoman

 

Justice for Sisters (JFS) has expressed its concern over the language used by the police and the media in reporting the death of a 30-year-old transwoman in Jalan Perkasa, Taman Tampoi Utama, Johor last Sunday.

This came after Johor police chief Kamarul Zaman described the deceased as a “male fully clad in women’s clothing”, which JFS claimed was disrespectful.

"The language used by the police and the media does not respect the dignity of the deceased, drawing unnecessary negative attention and comments during an already difficult period for the deceased’s loved ones and the transgender population at large.

"We have observed misgendering, use of pejorative language and other discriminatory comments by members of the public on various social media platforms, including those of news outlets, which are not moderated,” JFS said in a statement today.

"Respecting the dignity of all persons, regardless of gender identity, is a fundamental responsibility of police duties in ensuring justice and equality," it stresses.

The group said that such comments and sentiments are worrying and serve to escalate discrimination against an already marginalised segment of the population.

"When reporting on cases involving transgender people, the police and the media should use respectful language to avoid re-victimisation or degrading and humiliating treatment.

"In instances when the person’s gender identity is unclear and not known, gender-neutral language should be used in maintaining the dignity of the deceased.

"We urge both the police and the media to undergo gender and inclusion training to improve their service delivery and reduce discrimination against transgender people,” said the group, which has also called on news service Bernama and a number of news outlets to rectify their respective headlines and articles. - Mkini