It is becoming widely known that the Koran condemns homosexuality, and in many Islamic countries, gays and lesbians are put to death as the result of the scripture. The treatment of transgender individuals in these countries varies widely, but Iran, known in the US primarily for its unstable leader and hard line religious conservatism, has a seemingly strangely inconsistent policy. After the Ayotallah Khomeini led the revolution in 1979, Khomeini issued a fatwa that said gender identity disorder was actually a medical condition, and that transgender individuals
should be treated with gender reassignment surgery.
The current president of Iran recently reported that there were no homosexuals in his country during his recent visit to New York. What he didn't disclose was the fact that the country of Iran has the 2nd highest rate of sex change operations after Thailand for individuals "suffering" from gender identity disorder. Not only that, but the government of Iran also offers $5,000 to each transgendered individual to undergo the operation.
The statement from Mahmoud Ahmadinejad about no homosexuals existing in his country might be considered political propaganda, but it is also a possibility that many gays and lesbians in Iran elect to undergo gender reassignment surgery in order to avoid being arrested and put to death for homosexuality. Iran's position on gender identity disorder may look progressive to some Western minds, but the statement by the President concerning homosexual orientation, something that seems to exist everywhere else on the globe, is either lying, boasting or willful ignorance.
In other Islamic countries such as Afghanistan, currently under Taliban rule, men accused of sodomy often have heavy walls collapsed upon them. If the victim of the execution attempt manages to survive their injuries, they are allowed to go free. Pakistan, another Islamic country, punishes homosexual relationships by death, but the laws against such acts are rarely enforced and are more often used as blackmail tactic against citizens.
Iran's treatment of transgender individuals may be an improvement over the current treatment transgender individuals receive in other Islamic and Non-Islamic countries, but the practice of punishing homosexual behavior by death is in any case a barbaric treatment of individuals. The free sex change operations are indeed an unlikely benefit to some, but it is also likely that many homosexuals choose to deny their true inclinations in order to avoid persecution by the police.
