TRANSSEXUAL

TRANSSEXUAL

The definition of transsexual person can be defined as someone who identifies as a member of the sex opposite to his or her assigned sex. People who are transsexual often want to surgically or hormonally alter their bodies to match their identity. There are pre-op transsexual and post-op transsexual. Pre-op transsexuals usually have not had surgery and so have genitalia of their birth sex. They will usually still live as the opposite sex. Post-op transsexuals people undergone surgery to change their genitals. The term transsexuals also defined by the Western scholar as espoused. This term can refer to both male transsexuals that is male who want to be females in every aspect, and female transsexual, that is female who want to be males in every aspect. The populations of male transsexuals are higher than population of female transsexuals. In Malaysia, the local term for male transsexuals is ‘mak nyah’ which is mean mother. Soft like a female. Mak nyah refer to those who have not undergone sex change operation as to those who have.Beside that, the male transsexuals also known as ‘bapok’ or ‘pondan’ which generally refer to men who are effeminate and could also include homosexuals. As for female transsexual, the terms that give to them are ‘pak nyah’ and ‘tomboys’. For females, they are less noticeable because their attire jeans and shirt which are part of females dress-code. The female transsexuals are using girdle to cover their breast. They also cut hair with boyish hairstyle. With that they look like more like men.

Second point, it is about a type of gender. In Islam, there are four groups of genders which are female, male, khunsa and mukhannis or mukhannnas. The genders that are really accepted by the community are male and female. Khunsa also accepted by them because khunsa are basically hermaphrodites. Khunsa is a person who is born with both sexual reproductive organs. Mukhannis and mukhannas are male whose behavior is similar to females. Mukhannis and Mukhannas are the people who are rejecting their biological gender but do not actually have the physical sex organ of opposite gender. Mukhannis want a gender identity that is different from that with which they were born. They hate their male identity and want to be female. In contrast, a mukhannnas is one who is effeminate but does not want to change sex. Khunsa has allowed by Islam to undergo the sex change operation either to be male or female based on the characteristic of the gender tha t they are more tend to be. 

 Third point is about the different between transvestites and transsexuals. Transvestites and transsexuals are two terms used often as synonyms. Many people said that it is a misidentification. But, there is one main difference between transvestites and transsexuals 

regards gender identification. Transvestite do not usually exhibit any discomfort with their biologically determined sex. Transvestite men want to be man and transvestite women want to be women. They also retain all physical characteristic of their sex. In contrast, transsexuals believe that they should be the opposite sex. They are willing to take actions in order to be similar to their desired sex. They usually use hormone supplement such as estrogen and testosterone to cause chemical changes such as hair growth and vocal range alteration. Some of them also choose to undergo re-assignment surgery to make their body appear to be like the opposite sex. Many transsexuals live their public lives as the opposite sex, preferring to be seen as the sex they wish to be, rather than that which was biologically determined. Another difference between transvestite and transsexual is the extent to which their transgender activities influence their lifestyle. Usually those who have undergone reassignment surgery will live openly and constantly as their chosen sex. Transvestites will often confine their transgender activities to specific portions of their lives, remaining in traditional gender roles much of the time.

The fourth point is the causes of the transsexual. Many researches have been done to the human brain. There is one study discovered that the male and female brains differ in the size of the area for sexual functioning.  In the normal male brain this area (central subdivision of the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BSTc), a brain area that is essential for sexual behaviour) is approximately 62% larger than the normal female.  However, the male to female transsexual brain had a much smaller BSTc area for sexual function such as would normally be found in a normal natal female.  This discovery was significant because any influence of drug therapies or physical alteration (Orchidectomy) were ruled out as having any effect on the BSTc portion of the brain.  The study then concluded that the only possible cause could be that this normally could only have occurred during brain development in-utero.  Beside that, many psychiastrists and psychologist have simply assumed that transsexual is a mental ill ness. Scientific results also state that something appears to happen during the in-utero  development of the transsexual child’s central nervous system (CNS). So that the child are left with innate, strongly perceived cross- gender body feelings and self-perception. However the environment also can become the causes for a person to become transsexual. The first reason of the environmental is the role of parents in raising their children. There are some parents who want girl child but has given son. So they raise their children as a man. They purchased the game her son, dressed in clothing of a woman. Second reasons, when the children grew up without love and affection of one of their parents. So, they will be more inclined to the disposition of the parent who raised them. Third reason is the wrong sex education. Parents must provide the proper sex education. Proper sex education is a son to be educated so that tends toward women and vice versa. Breech presentation usually occurs when children are educated as all relations between men and women are illegal. This makes them prone to same-sex.

The fifth point is about the effects of transsexual. The other genders people that are not accepted by community consist of lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transsexual. The lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transsexuals people combine together to be a minor group in our society which is majority of the people are heterosexual. The effects for this minor group are they are always been discriminated and prejudiced. Living in a world that is dominated by the majority heterosexual, make a challenge for the minor group to fit in. They remain in misidentification, stigmatization and excessive self consciousness. It observed that there is high number of this minor group suffering psychological problem such as depression and suicide. At the same time there are also high cases of abuse of the drugs. They are also always be in dilemma. There is other issue of identity that affects the transsexual. Such issues are desire for surgical correction, orientation to clothing and child birth. The female desire of the men transsexual make them to act on involve in controversial issues. As example, there are male transsexuals who go to the extent that they seek surgical solution so that they can bear children.

The next point is the way of life of the transsexual. Since childhood, the ways of life of the transsexual person have typically rejected their physical appearance and behave like the opposite sex. Mostly, the transsexual people started to cross-dressing between the ages of 11-20. When they are become youth, many of them become homeless due to the rejection they face from the family. The most hurtful thing that transsexual people always face are when they have be reject from the people that they love. Beside that, most of the transsexual person determined undergoing surgery for having transition. They also determined to change name and legal document. For the transsexual person, always in their mind that they are born as the gender they want without having a transition. Hate crimes against the transsexual people rank third for the most common type of violence. The risks that can come out for the transsexual person are  not everyone can accept them. Beside that, their family and friends may be shocked, confused and even hostile and they also may face harassment, discrimination and violence. The family would kick them out of the house. If they are in college, they have to survive themselves to find money after being rejected by the family. They also will lose friend or their friends behaving differently towards them.

The other point is on how to overcome the effects of being transsexual. The most important effect of being transsexual is depression. The depression from being transsexual can be overcome by going to the therapy. The therapy is for new good mood. The steps for treating depression are recognize what cause the mood swings, deal with guilt, handle hostility and criticism, overcome addiction to love and approval, built self-esteem and feel good everyday. In Islamic way, the transsexual person should back to the beginning. They have to repent and seek forgiveness from Allah. They should regret all acts they have done and continue to leave sin and determined not to repeat such acts. They should also pray and ask for help from Allah and pray that does not deviate anymore.” O ye who believe! Ask for help (to face difficulty in completing an order of the Lord) with the patient and the (daily) prayer, for surely Allah (help)those who are patient. And establish the prayer (O Muhammad, thou and thy people), the two parts of the day (morning and evening), and at times the close of the night. Indeed, good deeds (their Lord) is to eliminate evil. God’s commandments that are reminder for those who remember. However, communities also play an important role in spreading the da’wah to this transsexual group. The community should help the transsexual group in the recovery of confidence to continue to face the world. 

Next point is about the Islamic perspective on transsexual.Islam forbids a transsexual person who are males behave like females and females behave like males in term of cross dressing , wearing make-up, injecting hormones to enlarge their breast and undergoing sex change operations. In 1983, there is a fatwa has been issued which is prohibiting sex change operations, should be imposed on all Muslims. However for the Khunsa cases, such surgery is permitted. Cross-dressing also permitted. There is one hadith which is shown that Islam rejects transsexual practices among men. It is ’Prophet Muhammad cursed the males who appear like female and woman who puts on the dress of a man’, hadith narrated by Al-Bukhari.  Behave like the other sex is an act against God’s creation. This is because God s.w.t. created man as male and female in any given their physical characteristics and different responsibilities. Allah s.w.t. said:"Was he (man) a drop of sperm emitted (in lowly form)? Then the sperm into a clot, then He created, and the proportion (as humans)? Then God made two sexes, male and female. "[Al-Qiyamah 75: 37-39] Besides opposition to the creation of God, behave like opposite gender is a first step towards a variety of other acts of disobedience. 

 The ninth point is others religion perspective about transsexual. For non-Muslim transsexual person which are mainly Buddhists, Christians or Hindu, they are generally allowed to be transsexual, although their religion may not allow it. This is because there are no official religious rulings, as there are for Muslim, to enforce the prohibitions. In Hindu philosophy has the concept of a third sex or third gender This category includes a wide range of people with mixed male and female natures such as transgender persons, homosexuals, transsexuals, bisexuals, and the intersex. Such persons were not considered fully male or female in traditional Hinduism, being a combination of both. They are mentioned as third sex by nature (birth) and were not expected to behave like ordinary men and women. In Hinduism, the universal creation is honored as unlimitedly diverse and the recognition of a third sex is simply one more aspect of understanding. As in Buddhist, in general, Buddhist scripture does not distinguish same-sex sexual activity from heterosexual activity, both being seen as non-conducive to spiritual growth. A 2000 document from the Catholic Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith concludes that the sex-change procedures do not change a person’s gender in the eyes of the Church. “The key point,” said the reported document “is that the transsexual surgical operation is so superficial and external that it does not change the personality. If the person was a male, he remains male. If she was female, she remains female.”Some Christian denominations accept transgender people as members and clergy.

The last point is about the issue involve the transsexual person. Issue that may be associated with a transsexual is the most recent issue, Mohd Ashraf Hafiz bin Abdul Aziz. This guy has undergoes sex change. He boldly made his application in the High Court to change his name to Aleesha Farhana Abdul Aziz to enable him get a place in local universities. However, the Mohd Ashraf’s application has been rejected by the judge after three factors had taken which are chromosomes, the presence of the applicant’s genitals when born and the existence of internal organs. He has undergoes sex change at Thailand and the application is made to make he easy to enter the local universities and continue a hard life as a woman. Mohd Ashraf died after had extreme depression after his application to change the name was rejected by the High Cou rt. As a conclusion, Allah prohibited us to change our physical. Sex change from male to female or vice versa, through surgery, it is illegal in terms of the Shari'ah on the Quran and Hadith guided. Allah says: "And surely I will lead astray them and trick them with my dreams and I tell them to cut off the ears of cattle (for idols) and I asked them to change the creatures of God. And whoever takes Satan for guardians, other God for he has lost with the loss. "(An-Nisa : 119).If any act of changing a few men who have a certain gender or as a woman, then what they are doing is a violation of the decree. If the individual is born as a man, men remain legal even if it managed to change her gender through surgery, as well as vice versa. God created man with the best events compared with other creatures. Allah says which means: "Verily We created man with the best of shape." (At-Tiin:4)