Part I Experiences of being lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex in the Asia Pacific 1.4. REGIONAL-SPECIFIC TERMS There are many specific terms used in the Asia Pacific region to describe people based on their sexual orientation and/or gender identity. These terms may be used in one country only or in a number of countries. There are few known regionally-specific terms for intersex status. Some lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities are more visible than others. Visibility can mean either relatively more acceptance or heightened vulnerability to discrimination. Less visible groups may not face as much direct discrimination in public places. However, they are at equal risk of rejection or violence from family or community members who may attempt to suppress or erase any form of diversity in sexual orientation and gender identity or intersex variation.40 1.4.1. More visible identities In all parts of the Asia Pacific region, the most visible culturally or regionally specific identities relating to sexual orientation and gender identity describe people assigned a male sex at birth who identify as a third gender or as transgender women. In South Asia, these include identities such as hijra in India and Bangladesh, thirunangai and aravani in India, khwaja sira in Pakistan and meti in Nepal. Each of these identities is frequently described as a ‘third gender’. In South East Asia, some common terms used by transgender women are kathoey in Thailand, waria in Indonesia and the reclaimed term mak nyah in Malaysia. In the Philippines, the term bakla is often used to describe people assigned a male sex at birth who identify as a third gender or are effeminate. Many transgender women prefer the hybrid term, transpinay, as it is a word created specifically by their community. In East Asia, a term used in Hong Kong is kwaa-sing-bit. The words whakawahine and Sistergirl are used by indigenous transgender women in New Zealand and Australia respectively. In the Pacific, terms used by transgender women do not exclusively describe a person’s gender identity. Often the terms are used by some men who have sex with men too, particularly those whose gender expression incorporates some feminine elements. Terms include fa’afafine in Samoa and Tokelau, fakaleiti or leiti in Tonga, fakafifine in Niue, akava’ine in Cook Islands and palopa in Papua New Guinea. These words are not limited to a person’s individual identity but also describe their gender role within their extended family. In Samoa, for example, fa’afafine are known for their hard work and dedication to the family in carrying out roles and responsibilities both for men and women.41 In Asia, local terms used by men who have sex with men usually focus on a person’s gender expression, including visible personality traits, that are more feminine than the norm. In this way any divergence from the majority norms is described in gender identity or gender expression terms, rather than as a person’s sexual orientation.42 For example, terms such as sak klay (short hair) and pros saat (handsome man) in Cambodia describe men who are considered less masculine or to have female traits, such as gentleness.43 Some terms in Asia also link feminine gender expression with a preference for being a receptive sexual partner. One example is the distinction in South Asia between feminine kothis and their sexual partners, panthis. Most panthis, and many kothis, are married to women.44 40 Questions of visibility and invisibility, and human rights violations in public and private spheres, are discussed in Chapters 2, 3 and 4. 41 Office of the Ombudsman of Samoa, State of Human Rights Report, 2015, p. 23. 42 D. Oetomo ‘Masculinity in Indonesia: Genders, Sexualities and Identities in a Changing Society’ in R. Parker et al. (eds) Framing the Sexual Subject: The Politics of Gender, Sexuality, and Power, 2000, pp. 46–59; D. Sanders, ‘Myanmar: These Gay Days’, 2015. 43 Cambodia Center for Human Rights, Coming Out In The Kingdom: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender People in Cambodia, 2010. 44 Naz Foundation International, Briefing Paper 3: Developing community-based sexual health services for males who have sex with males in South Asia, 1999. Chapter 1: Understanding sexual orientation, gender identity and sex characteristics | 15